From Hell's Heart I Stab At Thee
by TaciturnDancer
Summary: There's a new student at Degrassi, and with her quick wit and keen intellect, she quickly finds herself at home somewhere for the first time in a long while. Eventual Fiona/OC, along with quite a few other ships on the side. Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own Degrassi. But this is only because I have a hamster named Degrassi. The show though? Not so much.**

**A/N: Hello readers, this is my first foray not only into a multi-chapter fic that I will update on a regular basis (or at least try to), but into a story more or less centred on an OC. However, I will try to stay true to the series itself. In that way I will be including events such as Anya's 18th birthday, Eli and Clare's tumultuous relationship, transphobic remarks from Dave, ect that happen in each episode of Season 11 (or future seasons, I really have no idea when this will end, or how, at this point) as well as regarding or referencing things that went on in previous seasons. I may adjust or ignore some things (for instance, I started writing this before season 11 premiered, so I'm excluding Fiona's relationship with Charlie, and in a chapter I've already written Anya is still gaga over Dr. Chris due to a future AU plotline I plan on working into this fic) but hopefully this won't happen too often. Additionally, if you've read this whole blurb, I applaud your focus and patience. So without further adieu, I give you the first chapter that isn't much longer than this note! Sorry. ): I ramble.**

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><p>Degrassi's halls were flooded with noise; newly returned students bustled around, greeting each other with cheery cries. Pockets of conversation could be picked up by anyone passing through, bits and pieces of speech jumbled together to create a beautifully chaotic environment. This environment was one that also provided a blanket of solace for the quieter and more reclusive, allowing them to for the most part pass through life unbothered. In this way, the school was nothing remarkable, an experience most had felt in most schools. And for the most part, the atmosphere was put to waste. It was uncherished, these moments where a person could stand completely still and be a part of dozens of separate conversations and cliques, yet be overlooked so easily as students and teachers flowed through the school like salmon through a river.<p>

For the majority, anyways. The same could not be said for the girl doing just that in that very moment, however. A sweater was flung over her red polo somewhat haphazardly, the hood up and casting a slight shadow across her upper face. She glanced upwards, quickly locating a clock and noting the time. The girl began moving quickly yet agilely through the bustling hallways, navigating her way through the copious amounts of students. Their numbers thinned out slightly the further she progressed, however, and the girl soon found there were just a handful of people scattered around the main office.

Stepping into it, she raised a hand in greeting to the secretary, a small smirk that betrayed her nervousness spreading across her face. The woman smiled in return, quickly glancing at her ID card pinned to her shirt that was slightly covered by her sweater. The woman nodded at once, fishing through the papers on her desk and handing her a yellow sheet of paper she knew to contain her schedule, locker number, and combination. A silent nod of thanks passed between the two as the girl left to depart into the halls once more. However a voice, stern yet friendly, halted her and she turned about in response.

"Not going to scurry off before I get a chance to say hello to our newest student, are you?" the girl found the owner of the voice to be a balding redheaded man in a sharp suit, whom she immediately recognized be the Principal. Simpson was his name, she recalled.

"Of course not," extending her hand politely she continued, giving him a soft and earnest smile. "Very nice to meet you, sir. I've heard good things." The man smiled, looking slightly surprised by her formality.

"Yes, well. I hope you enjoy the rest of your time here, Miss Barrera."

"I'm sure I will."

With another quick smile at both Simpson and the secretary, she ducked out of the office. With another glance at a nearby clock, the girl assured she had plenty of time before her next class. Though, it was better to hurry to her locker just in case she got lost or some other such incident were to occur. Wheeling around the corner towards where she assumed her locker would be located, she had a split second to register another two girls walking right before she collided with one.

Books flying, she immediately fished for the other girl's notebook before gathering up her own and getting to her feet. She seemed to have recovered more quickly than the other girl who was still looking a bit dazed sprawled on the floor. She extended her hand, taking her counterpart's and helping her to her feet. Her shirt was purple, she noted quickly, as she handed her her book back.

"I'm really sorry, I'm a really big klutz." the girl quickly apologized, before introducing herself. "I'm Clare, by the way. You look new."

"You'd be correct in that assumption. Kallie, some people call me Kat but I'm fine with either. And it was completely my fault, I should know by now to be careful when speeding around corners. After all, it's the world's biggest cliche." Clare smiled as her friend spoke up, appearing just slightly territorial, for lack of a better word.

"I know, right? They always just go and PLOW! Right into another person. I'm Alli."

"Nice to meet you two."

"Hey, I'm not exactly an expert on accents or anything, but are you French by any chance?" Clare ventured and was answered by pursed lips and a tilting hand.

"Kind of, not exactly. I used to live in Montreal, so it's possible I developed a slight accent."

"Oh, that's cool. I hear Montreal is beautiful."

"Some would say so. It's not quite my style, though. Say, would you two know where locker number…" Kallie trailed off, glancing at her sheet of paper and immediately going red in the face. Sharing a glance with her friend, Alli leaned over to sneak a glance at her piece of paper and immediately cracked up.

"Oh, geez. Yeah, right down this hall and to the right after you pass the library. See you around, Kat." the new student nodded and said a quick farewell before departing towards where she was instructed. She didn't quite miss Alli's giggle and Clare's gasp as realization set in after the other girl shared what was so funny. And if Kallie wasn't mistaken, she could detect the sound of Clare smacking Alli in the shoulder as she wandered off to find locker 69.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I still own nothing except the idea and Kallie, and my hamster Degrassi, all of which survive on purely pitas and hummus. What? I'm too busy writing and being a lazy ass to cook.**

**A/N: Thank you to my reviewers so far, I'm glad you guys are liking it :). This update is coming earlier than I had anticipated, but hopefully the trend continues! Anyways, so it's easier to follow along with the fic, since although it's AU, it's still 'canon-ish', every chapter I will now be including a timeline for when each chapter happened roughly. **

**Timeline: The same day as Chapter One, following What's My Age Again? and before Idiotique.**

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><p>Kallie dragged herself out of History, groaning in relief as she reached her locker. Finally, lunch. As much as Kallie loved school, she hated History class with a passion. It had already happened, so who cares if a few students didn't know the exact details of every damn thing that happened in the country since it's founding, as long as they knew the basics. The other blocks had gone relatively well however, Kallie wagered. Clare had been in her writing class, along with a guy that Clare seemed tense around, the other girl had quickly befriended. His sense of style, along with his writing style was kind of morbid, but interesting.<p>

Finding herself at the cafeteria, Kallie scanned around quickly. She didn't see Alli or Clare anywhere, or the the guy from her writing class either, whom she had learned was named Elijah, or Eli. She quickly came to the conclusion they had lunch another block, and zeroed in on an empty table off to the side. She plopped herself down near the middle of it casually. As she was about to begin consuming her lunch- brown bagged of course, Kallie never had taken a liking to cafeteria food anyways- she glanced up as a shadow fell across her. Finding herself looking up on a trio of seniors, Kallie was about to give up her seat but was stopped by a montage of greetings directed her way.

"Hello-" Kallie greeted back, inwardly relieved the seniors here didn't seem as hostile as the ones in her former school so far. However, her salutation was cut off as the redhead who had taken a seat across from Kallie spoke.

"I'm Holly J, student council vice president, this is Anya and Fiona. You must be the new student."

"Yeah, I'm-" she was cut off yet again, this time by the girl with straight dark brown hair Holly J had introduced as Anya. As she spoke, she gestured to Kallie's ID card.

"Kallie Barrera. Pretty name."

"Th-" For the third time, Kallie was interrupted as she attempted to thank the girl for the compliment.

"Most Kallies I know have a C, not a K."

"Yeah, it's more comm-" And yet again, she found herself cut off. Any other person at this point probably would have gotten angry or frustrated, but Kallie smiled to herself. She preferred to keep quiet anyhow, and she had the feeling Anya preferred to do the talking. Sarcastically, Holly J interjected into Anya's ramble, swatting her playfully.

"You don't know any Kallies, Anya."

"Yeah but thats besides the point-"

"Guys." Fiona spoke up for the first time, silencing them both. "Are you planning on letting her complete one whole sentence this period? If so, please, by all means, let us know." The other two girls murmured apologies as Fiona took a seat to the left of both of them, rolling her eyes with a good-natured smirk. "Sorry about them, they'd talk forever if someone didn't stop them." An indignant noise came from Holly J which was quickly quieted by a quick pat on the hand from Fiona. "Oh, you know I love you. Flaws and all. So, Kallie is it?"

"Some people call me Kat, but I'm fine with either. To be honest I'm not really all that sure where Kat even came from."

"I'm going to call you Kallie, it's more original." The remark was met by a quiet chuckle and a nod of approval; even though she didn't really care what people called her, she really did prefer to be called Kallie, if only because she responded to it more quickly.

"So, where are you from, Kallie?" Anya inquired, quickly elbowed in the ribs by Holly J.

"Ahn, what did I tell you? Hold off on interrogation until the second day back."

"It's okay. I'm originally from Saskatoon, but we moved around a lot. When I was seven we moved to St. Johns for a year, then New York for four years," at this both girls glanced at Fiona who was smiling brightly, Kallie quickly came to the conclusion she must have ties to the large city, "And the past almost three years I've been living in Montreal. Apparently in that short amount of time I've managed to gain myself an accent, though. Luckily I didn't pick up a Jersey accent from New York."

"Oh gosh, Jersey accents are the worst. If you had picked up that particular accent I'd have to rip your tongue out, I'm sorry to say." Fiona's eyes sparkled mischievously, rousing a giggle from Anya and a grin from Kallie. Suddenly, Holly J spoke up, brows furrowed in confusion.

"Wait, there's a couple years missing on your timeline." The junior shook her head, her brunette locks stilled from excess motion by her hood, still in place.

"Nope, it's because those years haven't happened yet. I'm 15 in two weeks; I skipped two grades."

"Two? Geez, are you some sort of freaky-genius or something?" Anya inquired. She seemed skeptical, as if at any moment the other girl would yell 'SURPRISE!' or some sort of nonsense letting her know it was a joke. However, that signal never came as Kallie bashfully ducked her head.

"Oh, not at all. Right now my marks are pretty average, it's just in the past I wasn't being challenged enough so I got to skip a couple of years."

"Darn, and I was thinking you could give Holly J a run for her overachieving money."

The rest of lunch went by quickly, with the redheaded leader of the trio sipping water and eating a cucumber sandwich; Fiona consuming some sort of dish that just had to be takeout from a styrofoam container; the cheerful chatterbox that was Anya eating salad from the caf; and Kallie digging into her lunch of toasted pita and hummus, that more than once during the period Fiona helped herself to. And of course the lunch table was always peppered with humorous stories and statements, punctuated by frequent laughter from all the participants.

Quite quickly Kallie found herself enjoying all of the girls' company more than she had originally expected. What surprised the girl even more was that for perhaps the first time in her life, she was making friends. In fact, she was certain she had already found six of them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Only own my OC and my hamster and the idea. **

**Timeline: The same day, following What's My Age Again? and prior to the events of Idiotique.**

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><p>Fiona held open the door of the students of Degrassi's frequent after-school hangout, letting the other two girls in before heading inside herself. They took a table by the window, light streaming in and causing a different reaction from all of them. Anya squinted immediately, a complaint obviously on the tip of her tongue, Holly J appeared indifferent to the brightness, her hair set aflame and glowing, and the heiress herself basked in the warmth that marked the beginnings of summertime.<p>

They idly chatted after ordering their drinks, the topic at the moment seemed to be bouncing between excitement for summer, and dreading the separation that was only a couple months from occurring. Even though Fiona and Holly J's futures were both focused on New York, both the seniors knew that they certainly would be separated by country borders from their third friend. Plus there was always the unspoken realism that told them Fiona might not be joining Holly J in the Big Apple after all, due to her frequent absences this year.

As three ivory-coloured mugs were set in front of the social butterflies, Fiona quickly dipped into her drink, in an attempt to deter the conversation that was about to happen. Not about summer vacation plans, or universities, or anything of the sort. She knew by the smirk set on Anya's face and the gleam in Holly J's eye that they were a hop, skip, and a jump away from inquiring about their newly made friend. That was one conversation that the New Yorker was dreading deeply.

She briefly zoned out of their conversation which was still going on in full-force, mug paused in it's motion mid-sip. Blue orbs peered through glass and across the street, towards the comic shop where she saw Adam and Eli chatting with the girl with light brown hair she could already identify at first glance: Kallie. Eli was passing around a comic that although she couldn't read the title of, she could identify by cover- a fact she'd never own up to- to be the one Eli had a story featured in a short while ago. It had been the talk of the school, and more specifically the gamers and writers' circles for a few days before fading into oblivion.

The dark-haired girl noted the slight cringe as Kallie read the story, her lips moving in a way Fiona instantly connected to a sarcastic comment. Adam was instantly sent into peals of laughter she could hear even through the window, while Eli stood stunned for a moment before smirking. The dour boy then took the comic back, fishing through his bag to replace it with another which was instantly met by even more laughter, this time from all parties. Though Fiona didn't recognize this one, she had no doubt whatever it was had been a sarcastic remark of Eli's own, just without speech. She suddenly felt a longing to be a part of their conversation, to see the comic herself and see why it had roused such a reaction- if she even understood the joke.

"Whatcha looking at, Fi?" the other raven-haired girl craned her neck about the street, trying to see what had taken Fiona's attention in such a way.

"Oh, just some cute vintage heels in the window of the store just down the street there," the lie easily formed and slipped from her tongue. After all, the last thing she needed to do was be caught staring at Kallie. That would certainly be the catalyst that caused that talk she wanted so desperately to avoid to go underway. "Not so much my style though, I was thinking they would look better on you, Ahn. I still need to buy you a gift for your big one-eight after all."

"That you do, good of you to remember when it's _already passed_." she paused, but the quickly backtracked. "Of course, better late than never! …as long as there's interest in the form of a purse to go with it." Fiona rolled her eyes and grudgingly agreed, which roused an amused expression from their flame-haired counterpart. Little did many know, Fiona was quite the penny-pincher and always wanted to get her money's worth. No surprise not many realized it, due to her gracious spending habits, but Fiona hated overpaying almost as much as she hated poor quality. Thus, though she spent frequently, she spent no more and no less than what whatever she wanted was worth.

Another round of drinks were soon ordered, with Fiona occasionally sneaking a subtle glance out of the window towards the other trio, who after a few minutes, walked into the shop. Ten minutes later, they left it, with Adam and Eli carrying a generous stack of comics, and Kallie with only a few, but also a couple books the size of her head and the thickness of a car tire in tow. The girl had to swallow a laugh that was beginning to bubble up in her throat. Despite what the brunette had said at lunch, she was obviously much smarter than she gave herself credit for. Humility always looked good on a person though, Fiona figured, quickly adding an afterthought to that; unless they were Declan.

Tearing her attention away from the street, now that Kallie and the two boys were out of sight, Fiona found herself falling back into the easy rhythm of conversation with her best friends. It was a good match they all had, with Fiona's occasional quietness and keen wisdom that came with her boundless experience; Anya's bubbly personality and never-ending fountain of conversation; and Holly J's insight and intelligent wit. They were certainly the 'trifecta of awesomeness' as Anya had once dubbed them, and they were now known by from the Niners.

The conversation continued to flow well past the time where they usually would have packed it in and departed from The Dot. However it was halted quickly and easily by one flippant remark from Fiona, who sometime during the conversation, had let her walls down and thrown caution into the wind.

"Yes Anya, because the lesbian _really_ wants to know all about the things you'd do to your mom's cancer doctor given the chance. You know, unless Chris is short for Christina."

"Well, why don't we talk about more Fiona-friendly subjects then. Such as… what did you think of Kallie?" Fiona's jaw could almost be heard hitting the floor.

"I- She- She's fourteen!"

"So? Doctor Chris is what, twenty six? That's an eight-year difference between him and Anya. There's less than three years difference between you and Kallie." Fiona frantically shook her head, quick to disagree with Holly J's encouragements.

"Like it makes a difference? God, you guys. Like there's any real chance she's gay anyways." "What happened to the super-gaydar Declan told me about? You knew Riley was gay and Adam was transgendered before they came out to you. Work that radar mojo on Kallie." The dark-haired girl slumped forewords, groaning in exasperation, mumbling from beneath her hands, which her face was buried into.

"She's fourteen!"

"And extremely mature. Both in appearance and behaviour. It's not like we'd guessed she was any younger than us until she told us."

"I thought she might have been older. Except for her shirt was an eleventh-grader's… " Anya offered, smiling enthusiastically.

"Fourteen!" Fiona pushed the point, her distress becoming clear to the other patrons of the cafe. Immediately, the other two girls backed off a little bit, attempting to comfort Fiona with soft words and the occasional rub on the back until the girl was no longer repeating the number over and over, and burying herself in her arms. A sigh left her lips, refusing to make eye-contact with the others. Cautiously, Anya reached forwards and stroked the back of her hand.

"You got it that bad already, huh?"

"Kind of. Can you blame me though, she's…"

"Gorgeous, I know. I could feel my straightness being bent." Anya jested, "If you don't end up taking her, I will."

"Ha-ha. For the time being, you guys, I'd just like to try being friends with her. She really does seem like an interesting person. If it turns out she is gay, and is interested then maybe, just maybe. We'll see where it goes from there. Now I don't want to hear about this ever again, okay?"

"Not even when you have grandchildren?" Holly J pulled a serious face before letting Fiona know she was kidding via a friendly wink. "We're clear, Fi. The subject shall be skirted from this point on. Right Ahn?"

"Right. Now about those shoes…"


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I swear, people only thought up the idea of disclaimers so what fanfic writers **_**don't**_** have could be rubbed in their faces. Yeah, I own no more than I did yesterday.**

**Timeline: Roughly the exact same time as the previous chapter.**

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><p>Kallie swung her locker door shut, cringing at the loud bang that resounded from it. She had quickly found that locker 69 was infamous for being noisy- insert ironic and slightly inappropriate joke here- and that no matter how gently one were to close it, the resulting sound of metal crashing together made your teeth ring and your ears beg for mercy. At least that, and the locker's out-of-the-way location meant for the most part, Kallie was alone in the hall. Though it might not make sense to some, the brunette's thought process behind this was if she had this piece of crap locker, at least she wouldn't have people blocking her way and bumping into her any time she needed a book.<p>

Now though, the girl hadn't gone to the locker for a book. Rather, she held a small bundle of clothing along with her messenger bag. Under normal circumstances she would have waited to get home before changing, but as it turns out she had another class with Eli after her lunch period, and she had really hit it off with him and his friend Adam, who had met them outside the class afterwards and hung out with them during their free period in the zen garden. By the end of the block, they had invited her to hang out with them after school at the comic shop and, after a moment of consideration, the junior had agreed wholeheartedly.

Slipping into the girl's bathroom, Kallie quickly changed in a stall into a black tank top and jeans with a loose red and grey plaid button-down thrown overtop. The look was typical for her; casual, fashionable and _just_ bordering on androgynous, which was usually counterbalanced by her longish hair and soft makeup. After quickly reapplying some eyeliner and running a comb quickly through her near-blonde hair, she was good to go. Departing from the bathroom, she noticed Alli and Clare talking and offered them a quick wave before heading off to meet Eli and Adam just outside of the school.

She glanced around once she had made her way outside and jogged towards where she saw the two boys, converse scuffing against the pavement. Greetings were exchanged, with Adam offering a 'yo' which was quickly ridiculed by Eli's withering glance, causing Adam to backtrack quickly and offer a more typical salutation. The group spent no time in proceeding to the comic store, with smalltalk being supplied mostly by Adam, who was curious to where Kallie had gone to school prior to coming to Degrassi, what her favourite bands and colour was, and if that was a french accent (evidently Clare had been correct. The accent, small as it may be, was certainly present in her speech). Both of the boys seemed more than surprised at her taste in music, neither figuring her as a fan of classical music _or_ metal, let alone both.

Over halfway through the walk there, Eli had pulled out a comic and proudly brandished it. It was an oldish issue, a few weeks old, but it was in a plastic cover so it was obviously important to the boy. He explained the story of how he had written a short story which Clare had also worked on as editor, and then submitted it as part of a contest to have it published in that very comic. As it turns out, he had won and immediately bought out the entire store. At this point in the story, Adam rolled his eyes and commented that it probably wasn't very smart, because then none of the customers of the store would ever know about his story, let alone read it. The ebon-haired boy smirked a bit, before fishing into the plastic cover and handing Kallie the comic, which he had opened to the very back page.

At this point they were already in front of the store, so Kallie leaned against the doorframe, careful to leave space for people to be able to come and go. Her eyes skimmed through the story, able to pick up every syllable of every word at a rapid pace. She cringed slightly, careful not to crinkle the pages of the comic the gothic boy cherished so.

"Interesting. Though I've got to say, vampires suck. It's a lucky thing too, otherwise they'd be dead I suppose." Adam immediately cracked up, nearly doubling over with the force of his laughter. Eli himself looked at her blankly for just a moment before cracking the smirk she already knew to be his trademark. He gently lifted the comic from her hands, quickly replacing it with another one.

"Alright Miss Smarty-Pants, take a gander at this then, why don't you?" All parties looked down at the comic, titled _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_ and it took no more for the brunettes to enter a loud round of laughter that left them all gasping for breath with hurting sides. As the atmosphere began to sober, Kallie bit down on her lip gently before venturing out with a request.

"Hey, I actually haven't read this one yet. Would you mind if I…?"

"It's all yours, keep it. The plotline in that one makes me cringe more than the others do, and that's saying something."

"Maybe so, but I'm a detected Scooby-in-training. Besides, Willow's supposed to be awesome in this one. Gotta give it up for the nerdy redheaded lesbian." Adam's eyes immediately widened and Eli broke into a grin as his friend cussed loudly.

"Fuck!"

"Huh. Didn't peg you for a swearer, Adam." the girl raised an eyebrow suspiciously as Eli held his hand out to Adam.

"You owe me twenty bucks, bro."

"I have got to replace my gaydar or something. _Really? _Two in a row has got to be some sort of record." Realization set in as the money traded hands, and Kallie wasn't sure wether to be extremely offended or amused.

"You bet on wether or not I was a lesbian?"

"I was just joking around, Adam doesn't have very good luck with girls. But hey, I'm not gonna object to twenty big ones."

"And how do you know I'm gay? All I said was that I'm a fan of Willow." Eli's stare bored into her until she threw her hands in the air, sighing. "Alright, alright, I am. But two in a row? Adam's last crush was gay too?"

"Yeah, should have seen it coming. Lesbian uses transguy as beard." Kallie stared intently at Adam after that statement before making a small, thoughtful noise.

"You're transgender. I should've seen _that_ one coming." offering Adam a small smile, she continued. "Sorry your crushes continually end up being gay. If it's any consolation, if I was straight I'd date you."

"Yeah, and if I was gay I'd date you too." Eli joked.

"Aw come on dude, I tell you about the one guycrush I have and you hold it over me for the rest of my life? Not cool."

"Well, at least you have good taste in dudes." Adam stuck his tongue out at Eli, an action that was playfully mirrored with the addition of the goth sticking his thumbs in his ears and wiggling his fingers about. The female part of the trio giggled; a laugh like that was something quite rare from her and didn't happen too often. She nudged them both in the ribs before tilting her head towards the door of the shop, her silent query filling the air about the group. Both boys nodded, quickly slipping past her into the store, eager to uncover whatever treasures may lie behind the threshold.

They exited the shop some time later, and Kallie was taken by surprise how quickly her friends had managed to acquire a stack of about a dozen comics each. She had cringed at the total of their bills, which caused quite a few chuckles, one from the shopkeeper himself. As she had stepped up to purchase her items- an issue of _Shonen Jump_, _Bleach _and an _Archie & Friends_ along with two of Stephen King's more recent works that she hadn't gotten the chance to read yet- the man just smiled and waved her off when she attempted to open her wallet. Despite her objections, he had stood by his decision to give her them for free. After a bit of haggling however, she got him to allow her to at least pay for the novels, and with that their group left the store.

After declining an offer from Eli to drive her home, Kallie said her farewells and departed. Her short trek home was made a little longer due to her stack of books which insisted on swaying around at every one of her steps. She managed however, and a quarter of an hour after she had left the book shop, she was at her front door. Puzzling for a moment on how to open the door without dropping her books, she settled on the resolution to attempt to hold the books in one hand with her chin pressed on top, and reach out to unlock the door with her other hand. A minute later, she finally made it through the door and immediately dropped her purchases on the couch before flinging herself next to them face-first.

She lifted her eyes over the back of the couch to glance across the room at the grandfather clock that was located just to the right of the archway leading to the kitchen. Surprisingly, only about an hour and a half had passed since school had let out. The girl groggily ran through what homework she had in her head, and figuring she could complete all of it rapidly enough later that night, she let her grey eyes slip closed. The world of dreams immediately took hold of her, dragging her into the land of subconscious thought.

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><p><strong>AN: Hello. Yes, this is an Author's Note, all lonesome at the bottom here. Anyways, just a few notifications for you readers out there: One, the next two chapters will be shortish (about 500-800 words each). Secondly, reading the next chapter is optional. The story will make sense if you've read it, or if you haven't, given it's a dream sequence that Kallie won't recall even having upon awakening. The dream is a bit… dark/disturbing, so you've been warned.**


	5. Chapter 5: Interlude

**Disclaimer: I owneth nothing of importance. I wish I owned Annie and Jordy though. D: Just sayin'.**

**Timeline: ~Same day (what? A lot happens in one day in Degrassiland)**

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><p><em>Darkened figures, moving swiftly around. They jostled against each other in silence, and against the single girl, filled with colour and life in comparison. She struggled to move through the swarming crowd, they pushed and heaved against her small form, causing her to lose ground rather than gain it. A glance behind had revealed shadowy mist. It nipped at her heels, sickly damp and seeping into her skin; she noticed she was barefoot. Desperately pushing against the figures, she burst through and fell to her knees. The figures were broken now, all crumpled onto the floor and unmoving. <em>

_ She got to her feet, attempting to dash forewords only to be held spellbound. The light before her, so warm and all-consuming, was dry yet was not like the air of a desert. She cocked her head to the side, trying desperately to form a word or a sound, something in reaction, something to describe this wondrous thing. But she was left with nothing, her throat was so tight it was painful to breathe. She gripped at her neck, still attempting to form any sort of reaction. A scream, a pained face, maybe, but there was nothing. As she looked down she saw her hands, once slightly tanned and smooth as cream, were replaced by claws. Dark as the night, as the shadows in one's closet. Dark as the mind of the creatures that lurked under a child's bed, closer and closer until…_

_ A glance up. The light was gone, the once warm and all-encasing goodness was replaced. The entire space in which she once was, gone. Instead now was a wall-less and ceiling-less cavern stretching onwards, the pale grey around her promising light and warmth somewhere. If only she knew where. She looked downwards, discovering that wherever she was held no floor either. She wasn't falling however, or floating either. It was is if she were just there, in the very sense of the word._

_ She looked around her again, seeing the environment change. Now she was in a darkened house, unfamiliar and nondescript in the way that left one thinking that they had seen it somewhere before. In front of her, in the middle of the room she was in, was a large picture. She distantly wondered what the strange creature depicted in it was, with it's formless grey body, and obvious slouch. It's arms were like large, scooping claws, and it's legs were twisted and broken so graphically she had the instinct to swallow back bile, though none had risen. It's head though, that was the worst part. White, wispy hair, the remnants of what had once been a beautiful head of silk-like strands clung to the exposed skull that was browned in the way a skeleton that had spent years in a grave was. The teeth were sharp and slicing, yet clear like glass and appearing just like jagged extensions of the thing's jaws. But those eyes, undoubtedly, those were the things that made her blood run cold as she looked at them._

_ Terror. That's what was read in those clear grey eyes, that appears the lightest of blues in the sun, or when they expressed anger. They blinked, and her stomach sunk as she realized it was not a portrait she was looking at…_

_ It was a mirror._


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I'm running out of anything remotely clever to say at this point… **

**Timeline: Still the same day. Don't worry, 6 chapters for one fanfic-day is my limit (I think. :P)**

**A/N: How 'bout that episode, huh? I just ordered my "Dave is a giant douche and everyone that's worth mentioning is Team Adam" shirt in the mail. It should be here within two to three days. =D I also ordered a "Katie is a BAMF" and an "Imogen, back up off my bb" shirt as well. Point is that it was a good episode. Plus yay! Fifi gets to stay another year. Anyhow, enough with the rambling and fingerling. There's a fic to get to! (A double update was ordered, and I aim to please. 0=] (That's an angel btw, in case anyone reading this has a mind that lives in the gutter like mine))**

Bolting upright, Kallie could hear her heart pounding, a ringing in her ears, and her breathing echoing loudly around her. For a moment she was unable to place where she was, but slowly she began to recognize the environment and calm herself. Instantly, she realized that the ringing wasn't in her ears as she fumbled in her pocket for her cell before raising it to her ear and answering tiredly. It took a couple of seconds before she recognized the voice on the other line to be her father, who was informing her he wouldn't make it home tonight.

"There's leftover pizza in the fridge from yesterday you can eat-" Kallie slowly found her voice, still raspy from sleep, and interrupted his interactions.

"Dad, that was last week, I finished the pizza off four days ago."

"Oh, right. Feel free to order in then, there's a hundred in the pocket of my jacket that's hanging in the hall closet. You can keep the change and buy yourself something nice tomorrow. Okay?" the girl inwardly groaned, but let him know that was alright before hanging up. Her father hadn't been home for three days, and hadn't called in that time up until this point either. Of course she managed alright, her parents always left her the 'emergency' credit card, that was really just used whenever they didn't bother coming home. And for her mother that meant always, the only times she really was at home was if she needed to pick up some clothes or drop something off.

Really it didn't affect her that her mother was never around, it was better that way for the both of them, given their mutual disliking of each other. However, it did bother Kallie that her father was becoming more and more absent in her life as well. On top of that, it bothered her _that_ it bothered her. But she understood, after 'the incident' it was hard for both of her parents to be around her, so they had begun taking up extra hours at work. Her mother even worked two full-time jobs and basically lived out of her car, just so that she wouldn't have to deal with them.

Kallie pulled herself to her feet, in search of the money her father had told her was in his coat. She quickly found it, but numbly realized she wasn't even hungry. Perhaps she'd have a bowl of cereal or something of the sort later, but for now, the student just shoved the bill in her own pocket and stalked off to do her homework for the week.

A soft beep sounded from across the room, drawing Kallie's attention upwards from the novelette her nose was buried into. She had finished the last of her work about half an hour ago, perhaps a little less; the brunette had found herself bored with nothing remaining to after helping herself to a bowl of cheerios, sans milk. Though she had contemplated going right to sleep after eating, it was still light out, and going to sleep at that moment would likely screw up her internal clock for the next while. So instead reading for about an hour seemed to be the logical solution.

Closing the musty text with a delicate thud and gingerly placing it on her desk, she pushed herself out of the chair she was seated in and paced across the room, making her way towards the source of the sound. The teen lifted her phone from the side table next to get bed carefully, eyes searching the screen. Realizing it was a text from an unknown number, she cautiously opened the message, bold black letters staring at her in an otherwise plain field of florescent white.

_**Hi Kat,**_

_** It's Clare. Adam gave me your #. I know its kinda late but I need a favour.**_

Kallie's fingers quickly mapped out the keys, tapping out a response at lightning speed that was short and to the point, the response to which arrived near instantaneously.

_**Ok, what is it?**_

_** We (the school) are working on a play, but we need some1 to compose and perform the music. I heard through the grapevine you're a musician?**_

_** Kind of, I'm a pianist and violinist. A bit rusty, but I could compose. I might need to recruit other ppl to actually perform it though.**_

She paused for a moment, chewing on her lip thoughtfully before adding, _**+I'd need to get the script of course, and ideally speak to the director+cast, too. **_A few minutes later, the phone chimed again.

_**That'll be fine, we're having a meeting tmrw b4 school 7:30. Can you make it?**_

_** Yeah. Night, Clare.**_

_** Night.**_


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Grr… so this chapter was originally supposed to be placed during Idiotique and have Kallie be helping out with the play from season 10 (the one with Adam the mad scientist and Fiona the robot girl or whatever it even was) that everyone seemed to forget about. But Cry Me a River and onwards ruined my plan. So, as a result, I've warped the time a little so Idiotique and Cry Me a River occur roughly at the same time. I think it makes more sense anyways, since Degrassi kinda forgot about Drew bleeding in the snow.**

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><p>Kallie yanked on the front door of the community school, trotting in at a brisk pace. She weaved her way through the nearly empty halls, stopping only to briefly hail Principal Simpson who seemed to be more than a little surprised that the girl had chosen to help with the school play on only her second day there. Continuing on her trek through the school, she soon came to the room Clare had told her the play meetings were held- just across from the room auditions and performances themselves were held in.<p>

Purposefully, she stepped in, a little surprised at the amount of people that were in the space. There had to be almost two dozen students there, even though it was supposed to be a meeting for just the core people involved with the play. Kallie also surprised herself however, realizing she already knew many of the people there. Of course there was Clare, but Eli, Adam, and Fiona also seemed to be a part of it. Additionally, she noted faces she recognized seeing from her various classes and around the school the previous day.

The girl cleared her head quickly and approached Clare who was bent over some paper at the large oval table in the middle of the room. She cleared her throat once, the other student immediately looking up and smiling. Leafing through another stack of paper to her left, she pulled out a bundle that had been stapled together and handed it to her.

"Kat, hi. You're early, it's only…" she looked at her watch, "7:10. But that's good I guess, it'll give you time to quickly skim through some of the ideas for the play the drama department has so far and talk to Eli and the others." Kallie's inquiring gaze probed her to continue on. "Eli's a shoe-in for screenwriter. You should probably also talk to Fiona too, if she's not on wardrobe she'll probably end up as director. Of course she might skip out before you have the chance to talk to her," Kallie's brow furrowed at this, but her silence told Clare to continue, "Adam's our 'casting agent' unofficially, I guess you could say. He was the male lead in our play last semester. Almost everyone else here does behind the scenes stuff. Lighting, costumes, special effects, you know. Oh! And I also compiled a list of most of Degrassi's more talented musicians… there's not a lot, most of the more musically talented graduated last year. I did put some former students' contact info near the bottom. Just in case."

"You're thorough. I can respect that. Thanks, Clare." the brunette nodded to the sophomore, glancing through the contact sheet quickly. Surely enough, the list near the top was quite short. In fact, there were only three names.

_Drew Torres, Sav Bhandari, Wesley Betenkamp. _She recognized the first two to be Adam and Alli's brothers instantly, but the third name remained a mystery to her for the time being, though it was slightly familiar. Her grey orbs continued to map out the page, absorbing the names at the bottom. Along with the names, there were usually emails, and one to three different numbers. Lastly, next to each name was a location. A few seemed to still be in the greater Toronto area, though many of them were currently in Los Angeles or New York. She made a mental note to contact a few of the musicians before cleanly folding the piece of paper in half and placing it in her bag.

The new student pulled out a chair at the table and plopped herself down in it, beginning to rapidly scan through the list of ideas she had been given. Immediately she hummed thoughtfully, trying to hide her disdain at the idea of a 'reality TV show' play. Flipping through the rest of the ideas and the scenes that were enclosed in the makeshift collage of a script, she finally found one halfway decent. The thought that this more or less brilliant and creative idea must have been already unofficially accepted for the play crossed through her mind quickly.

It didn't take long before ideas and emotions started flowing through her head, causing her fingers to lightly drum across the surface of the table as if playing a piano almost on their own accord. The idea she currently grasped may change, she knew, after the play had actually been fully written and fleshed out, but for now she could almost hear the crashing of cymbals and gongs, with a haunting melody in the foreground. A crooked grin spread across her face, working it's way to light up her eyes. She could do this, and she'd help it be great by any means possible; that much she knew of.

Eli took a seat across from Kallie, leaning across the table on his elbows and taking the recently appointed composer's attention with his presence. She glanced up from the screenplay, locking eyes with him for a moment before setting the pages aside.

"How are you finding it so far, Miss Barrera?" His signature smirk materialized, his eyes flickering over to the script. "I know so far it's a mess, but we have a good head start on things, if we can get the entire drama department to agree on one idea. It seems you have better taste than a lot of the students in that class have, though." He nodded to her script, still opened to the excerpt from the idea which she had found so great in a sea of disaster. Kallie waved off the compliment as she responded, her words coming out businesslike, yet still retaining a playful lilt to them.

"It's better than vampires, I can tell you that, Elijah. And don't expect flattery to get you anywhere," she cautioned, "not everyone is as susceptible as me. But… off the record? As long as the witch is a redhead, you have my vote."

The gothic teen shook with silent mirth, causing a few strange looks his way. It probably wasn't a common sight, seeing him shaking with such laughter. After a moment however, he managed to compose himself again and flashed her a grin. "I'll see what I can do, but I am just a lowly writer." She rolled her eyes at him as he let out a dramatic sigh and slumped into his chair.

"Geez, El, with attitude like that _you_ should be an actor."

"…El? I'm ok with Elijah, but let's leave snake-fish out of my various nicknames."

"Technically Elijah isn't a nickname, it's your actual name." she cleverly remarked, earning her a mutter of _touche._ They continued to talk for the remainder of the time before the meeting were to take place, mostly about random things, but also about the play itself. As the meeting was about to go underway though, Kallie's curiosity finally won out and she ventured out with a tentative question. "So, why's Clare here?" The query was met immediately by Eli's jaw tightening. It was almost undetectable, but after years of being a quiet outsider, body language was one language the girl was fluent in. So, she tentatively lowered her gaze, folding her hands in her lap in a submissive and cautious move; awaiting the sudden silence to be broken by his answer.

"She's on the paper, or at least on a trial stage. She'll be covering the play during it's full run." The last few words of Eli's quiet statement was nearly drowned out by the meeting being called to order, the bustle and scraping of chairs following leaving Kallie with no room for a reply.

The meeting was quite short and to the point, the musically inclined girl thought, they set straight into debate (more like argument, really) about what idea was best until a dramatically cleared throat silenced most of them. The person that had cleared their throat was a girl, with strange hair and even stranger sense of style which Kallie was certain went against dress codes. Her voice carried well however, displaying her obvious experience in theatre.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I regret to inform you that nearly all of you are wrong, and also idiots. _Clearly_ the true genius here is myself. And as a masterful artist, I am telling you that Eli Goldsworthy's play is far greater than any pathetic little ideas you might have." she delivered this entire speech with an airy, yet commanding tone, and a smile so obviously fake it seemed genuine. If Kallie had been less tactful, generally quiet, and polite in most circumstances, she likely would have stood up right then and called the other girl out for being so try-hard and biased. Just because she silently agreed more or less to what had been said, that didn't make the other teen right.

From the far side of the table, however, an objection was voiced by none other than Clare. She seemed to be trying to keep her face blank and her voice levelled, so that emotion didn't overtake her as she spoke. "You guys, listen. It really doesn't matter all that much right now. The entire department doesn't need the decision to be made for nearly another week yet, and that's just for the rough idea. Just... talk it over more in class, and slowly eliminate some of the ideas until you only have one or two left and you'll be fine."

"All in favour?" Adam jested, and was met with a chorus of 'I's, mostly from his side of the table where the more serious attendees were seated. After it had been decided however, there was a lapse in speech, caused mostly by the members there unsure wether or not the meeting was adjourned; the lack of appointed leadership was quite a disadvantage, Kallie thought. A moment more was all that was needed, however, before it was realized by all there that no one was about to tell them the meeting was over; it just was. Another few moments of loud noise within the room from chairs scuffing the floor, and students clambering out of the room, and Kallie finally slipped out of her chair and into the hall.

She waved at Adam as they passed each other on their way to their respective destinations; Kallie to her locker, and Adam seemingly towards the cafeteria, or perhaps the adjoined radio/announcement room. He waved back enthusiastically, walk-jogging backwards for a few paces until he almost tripped over himself. As he got his balance back, she found she had to stifle a laugh at his beet-red blush. Obviously he still had a slight crush on her, which was quite flattering, frankly.

As the brunette reached the infamous metal home to her books, she was slightly surprised to see Fiona there. The heiress was leaning against locker 70, one elbow against it with her head leaning on it's hand, and the other hand bent before her, a dark navy cloth necklace - if it could be called such - dangling from her finger. Attached to the string was a little paper card housed in a plastic jacket reading: _Kallie Amelia Barrera_.

"You forgot this." before Kallie could ask how Fiona had gotten to her locker before she had, if she had left before the dark-haired girl, she continued. "You took the long way, if you go around the other side of the main office then cut through the library, and from there through the computer lab, you can get here twice as fast than you do going the direct route."

"Huh. I'll have to remember that one in the future." she said, gingerly taking her student ID from Fiona. "I'll see you at lunch then?"

"Count on it."


	8. Chapter 8

Kallie stared out the window of the classroom, chin resting upon her open palm casually. She tiredly fluttered her eyes, the lids rapidly becoming heavy with exhaustion. The girl hadn't slept well at all the night prior, and her quick nap after she had arrive home did nothing to stifle the feeling of fatigue. Struggling to stay conscious, Kallie found that no matter how hard she fought, she was quickly losing the scuffle before a stern tap on her shoulder awakened her just slightly.

"Hey, I know math is boring and all, but I seriously doubt it's _that_ boring." Otherwise serious blue eyes bored into hers, a light spark of amusement hiding within them. "Besides, there's only five minutes left until it's over. The last thing you'd need is to get lunchtime detention, I'm guessing." She found the sides of her lips twitching upwards in agreement at that; between lunch with Fiona and the other seniors, trying to get a quick nap in (or at the very least finding a source of caffeine to get her through the day) and getting a start on getting volunteers for the score of the play Kallie couldn't afford to lose a split second of her next block, let alone all of it.

The brunette girl behind her quickly motioned for her to turn around with another über-stern face, which Kallie could barely repress a giggle at for whatever reason, as she turned to face the front of the classroom. For the few remaining minutes she managed to focus long enough to jot down the rest of the notes she had supposed to at the beginning of the class, just barely finishing in time as her teacher more or less commanded the class to hand in yesterday's homework.

As the bell rang, Kallie began to jolt towards the door but stopped just before it, noticing the brunette she sat in front of standing next to the doorframe. Without hesitation, or apparently without sense of personal boundaries, she jerked Kallie's hand forewords a slapped a tiny little orange bottle into her hand then jerked her hand closed around it. "God's secret to living life with a hectic schedule. Learn it, live it, and love it because I don't want to spend the rest of the year having to wake you up or watch you drool. Got it? Awesome." This entire blurb of speech came out quickly, but in a level and evenly paced manner that made it easy to follow. "Katie." It took a few moments for Kallie's brain to catch up to the very last part, eventually the ball dropped and she realized that the shortly stated name had belonged to the person who had all but grunted it out in a precision manner.

As Kallie ventured out into the hall and towards the cafeteria, she took the time to look at the bottle Katie had given her, not at all surprised at the black letters that stared back at her, dubbing the energy drink '5-hour Energy: Hours of energy now, no crash later!'. She quickly ripped the cap off of it, taking a quick drink and making a face at the taste before putting the remainder in her bag; there was about half left, perhaps a little less.

Now finding herself at the same table she had occupied the previous day, she smiled at Holly J who was already there and took a seat across from her. "Hey. Where's Anya and Fi?" The mention of Anya obviously hit a little bit of a nerve, because it was met by a wince, that quickly turned into a frown and a furrowed brow at the mention of the other senior.

"You haven't seen Fi either? I was hoping you might know where she was, I haven't seen her since earlier this morning. And we and Anya had a bit of a falling out. We made some comments about her that we didn't really know were about her at the time… she stormed off before we could apologize."

"No sign of her, I saw her a little while before classes started this morning, and I thought I saw her in between my second and third block, but nothing since then. She said she was supposed to be here for lunch though, she might just be running late or got stuck in the lunch rush in the hall." she reasoned, adding soon after, "I'm sorry about what happened between you two and Anya, maybe I can serve as a messenger? I am Switzerland after all."

"Thanks, but I'd like to see if we can resolve it ourselves. No offence to you, it's just it's sort of a touchy subject, moreso for Fiona than anyone, really. She's the most… opinionated about this whole ordeal, you could say."

"What did happen anyways, if you don't mind me being nosy?" Kallie inquired, fiddling with her contact paper and typing out a couple of texts to Drew and Sav with one hand.

"Long story short, Fiona hosted a party for Anh's 18th birthday, and this huge idiot of a jerk Owen apparently slept with Anya in Fiona's bed and then told the whole school about it." The brunette, who had just taken a sip from her bottle of water that had been resting within the confines of her messenger bag, choked on it. After ceasing in her coughing fit, she took a gasping breath before exclaiming just a touch too loudly.

"They had sex in her bed?"

"Factor in Owen's an arrogant and ignorant bastard if there ever was one, and his previous actions towards friends of both Anya and Fi, and it was a recipe for disaster. Needless to say, Anya's not going to be getting her birthday purse on account of the fact Fi over-reacted just a touch and ordered herself a brand new mattress."

"Somehow I'm not terribly surprised. I'm assuming she burned the old one?" Though the remark was meant to be a joke, Holly J's eyes shifted and she folded her hands together just a slight bit more; combined with the silence that came after, it was a sure signal that Kallie was a bit more correct than she had meant to be. "No way, she actually burnt it?" The redhead's mouth tightened a bit into a line and she nodded minutely. "That's… pretty badass actually. I mean everyone always says they're going to burn something when they're disgusted by it or whatever, but next to none actually do."

"I guess when you look at it that way, it's quite a bit funnier than it is via the dramatic perspective." Holly J smiled a tad then checked her watch anxiously. "Ugh, where is she?"

A strange-haired girl that happened to be walking by paused and turned her head towards the pair. "Hello Holly Sinclair. If you are wondering the whereabouts of Fiona Coyne, I regret to inform you she slunk off during drama class last period. Goodbye. And welcome to Degrassi, Kallie Barrera."

"It's Holly _J _Sinclair!" the senior called after her angrily, knuckles whitening in what Kallie knew to be a mixture of annoyance at the initial being left off of her name, and worry for Fiona. She huffed, then after a small pause of silence and a furrowing of her brow, she wondered aloud. "Who the heck was that anyways, and why did she use our full names?" Being met by a shrug, Holly J nervously resumed ringing her hands and murmuring to herself in concern. Kallie, although she tried not to hear what was obviously meant to be a private mental monologue, couldn't help but pick up certain muttered words such as 'champagne', 'incident', and one name that seemed to be mentioned quite a lot; 'Bobby'. Though she had only known Fiona a short while, the summation of those few words were enough to send Kallie into an anxious wreck. It was no wonder Holly J felt so uneasy.

"Maybe she felt sick or something? She might be at home." Kallie ventured, snapping the redhead out of her trace-like thought process.

"You're right, of course. That's probably it. I'll just call her mom and ask if Fi's at home. Or have her swing by to see, if she's out. Discreetly of course, no point in worrying her if there's no reason for worry."

"I'm sure everything's fine."


	9. Chapter 9

**Exclaimer: Alas, I do not own Degrassi. **

…**yet. *devilish laughter and schemey hands***

**A/N: Another day, another dollar, another chapter… anyways, thanks to Random Storygirl for your awesome reviews, they make me smile. =D And in response to two of them, I indeed think Imogen is a tad creepy, but she's unique and makes me laugh. Also, I haven't seen The Grapist, but I've heard of it. =p**

**Timeline: Later that lunch.**

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><p>Notes flew out of the music room into the all but empty hall outside of it, the stream of music echoing off the metal lockers and linoleum floors. Occasionally a few lunchtime passersby peeked into the room, smiles on their face as they watched the pianist at work, her fingers dancing across the off white keys, only to halt suddenly to jot down a couple of notes with a nearby pen. It was going slower than Kallie would have liked, but she had already made quite a dent in the music that would be played during the intermission of the production.<p>

She paused in her work briefly as she heard voices filtering through the intercom, a smile gracing her face as she recognized Adam's voice. She chuckled as Adam 'boomed' his co-host, though she did roll her eyes also. It was dorky, but dorkiness was part of Adam's package, and he wore it well. As they signed off after a few minutes, Kallie's fingers continued in their work almost without her noticing.

Lost in thought, she wondered at Fiona and her whereabouts. Holly J had called her, to no answer, before trying to contact her mother. Though she hadn't answered either, Holly J left a message that was just subtle enough that she hinted at Fiona perhaps being at the condo without saying, 'Your daughter is missing from school and I think she might be skipping.' Despite Kallie's half-hearted reminders to her Fiona might have a good reason for leaving, Holly J had shared that earlier in the day while she was getting her grad robes fitted, Fiona had showed up when she was supposed to be in drama. After they had talked, the vice-president assumed Fiona had headed back to her class, but obviously that had not been the case. After a bit of thought, Holly J had come to the conclusion Fiona must have left to hang out with Charlie; a… 'friend', she had explained in an oddly hesitant tone. From the sound of it, that must have been the case indeed, but Kallie couldn't help but worry and wonder nonetheless.

After a few more minutes of composing, she quickly gathered her things. It was probably best to set out a little early and beat the post-lunch rush to their lockers; the junior had Gym, Media Immersion, and English after the break was over. As she proceeded to her locker, she couldn't help but muse over the school's artistic nature. From things like Drama courses and after school art classes, to band, advanced English courses, and M.I., the school seemed to subtly lean towards the unconventional, away from the usual Math, History, Science, Science, Math, Science, English routine of most high schools.

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><p>Soon enough, Kallie found herself before the gymnasium, with lunch over and hoards of students rushing into the change rooms. She winced, and was surprised at a familiar hand snaking it's way around her shoulders.<p>

"Don't worry, grasshopper number two, just make sure to keep your eyes down around Bianca. The last thing we need is another 'the entire LGBT community is after me!' meltdown. I swear, one more of those and this cane," Eli lifted his skull-adorned walking stick off the ground a few inches, "Will be shoved into a very unpleasant place of hers."

"You're in this gym class? Last I checked you were kinda…"

"Swaggering, it's not a limp, it's a swagger. And it doesn't prevent me from chucking red rubber balls at peoples' heads. Now hurry up, you girls take forever to change." he said, 'swaggering' off to his change room.

"That is a sexist and completely untrue statement, Goldsworthy!"

A few minutes and no incidents later, Kallie emerged from the change room, triumphantly noting she was out before many of the guys in the class. But surprisingly, not Eli, who gave her a triumphant grin. She met him with her 'I'll get you next time, and your little dog too' stare, which albeit, looked a little more like the sun was in her eyes than anything. Soon enough, the rest of the class was in the gym, and they begun picking teams. Owen (she had a face for the name now, at least) was one team captain, while a redheaded guy named Joey was the other captain.

Almost immediately, Owen picked Bianca and a couple of jocks whom she was sure had less brain mass than a caterpillar did. Joey however, seemed to make more logical decisions, opting for brains and agility instead of brawn, which showed in his picks of a few soccer players and Katie from her math class, plus surprisingly, herself. At last, there was Eli and a boy with thick-rimmed glasses left. Owen pointed at the nerd, jerking his thumb over his shoulder as Eli smirked, seemingly content with being on the other team.

As the game begun, it became evident if it wasn't already that the two teams and their respective captains had completely different play styles. Owen and his lot were quite offensive, throwing the balls hard almost as soon as they got them, while the other team dodged and hung onto the dodgeballs for as long as possible before throwing them when they saw opportunity. In terms of how many people were gotten out, however, the teams were pretty evenly matched, and there were only three players remaining on each side before long.

Kallie stood close to the back, Katie was a few steps in front of her and to her left, with Eli near the far right of the room. Across from them, Owen and a thick-necked guy named Rick stood, armed. A few paces behind them, Bianca stood, seemingly disinterested in the game. She exchanged a glance with Katie, and the other girl nodded, suddenly dashing forewords as if to grab a ball near the line to throw. Owen and Rick immediately fired, Katie dodging around both throws and ceasing a ball triumphantly, with Kallie and Eli trotting up to her to scoop up the other two balls that were still in play.

"You guys really aren't much for strategy, are you?" Katie's eyes gleamed, with her leaning forewords slightly so her face was right in front of Owen's.

"You see… that's where you're wrong." Owen stepped to the side, letting Bianca, who revealed that she held a ball, fire straight at Katie, getting her out. A stunned look crossed her features before she shrugged a bit, walking over to the bench. Now it was two against three, with two balls in possession of Kallie and Eli, and two in the possession of the other team. A throwing war broke out abruptly, Eli managed to get out Rick and Bianca before getting hit himself. All four of the balls laid on the opposite side of the line from Kallie, two in which were in the hands of Owen. Kallie kept her eyes locked on him, smiling slightly as she spoke. "So… you plan on paying Fiona for the new mattress she had to get?"

His face reddened as Eli nearly fell off the bench with laughter at the side of the room, causing a chain reaction that had their entire team laughing, and even most of the other team, including Owen's brawny jock friends. He fired.

Kallie barely had time to realize this before it had left his right hand, the red ball bounced off of her head, causing her to stagger back as the second ball went flying, also hitting her in the head and knocking her onto her rear with a grunt. It hadn't hurt very much, but the shock and anger behind it had left a few tears welling up in her eyes that she blinked back just in time to catch the second ball that had hit her. It had flown directly up after hitting her forehead, flying back down in a straight line right into Kallie's hands as she lay on the floor of the gym, as if it had been begging to be caught.

Eli and Katie were the first ones up off of the bench, she could see in her peripheral vision, many of the other players getting up after she had caught the ball, or shortly beforehand.

"Dude, that was like in a movie or something. I swear, you hovered for a second before falling down! And then with the catch, that was insane!" Kallie took Katie's offered hand as Eli enthused about their win, causing the two girls to roll their eyes simultaneously.

"Yes Eli, I'm fine, thanks for asking."

"Sorry. I need to get my priorities in order don't I?"

"Just a little bit…" Katie reached out, carefully grazing the spot where the first ball had hit Kallie, causing her to wince slightly.

"Jeez, that's gonna leave a bruise. Wait here, I'll get ice." Before Kallie could try and object, the other brunette had raced off. Once that girl had set her mind on something, there really was no stopping her. A surprised noise came from her side, causing her to turn to Eli with a question written on her face.

"You thawed the ice queen. At least partially, that is. How'd you do that?"

"Huh?"

"Katie. She's infamous for her 'intensity'," he made air quotes, "That's really the nice way of putting it. She makes Antarctica look like a tropical paradise, thus making her nearly impossible to befriend. I swear, Marisol is the only one who's made any headway whatsoever, and that's mainly because she can't take a hint. Or a straight-out request to leave you alone. So, spill. How'd you do it?"

"I don't know. I nearly fell asleep in Math and she woke me up, then gave me one of those energy-things and then it was now and that's all."

"That's… all. I swear, Kal, you must have some magical mojo that makes people like you."

"Doubtful, besides, Owen seemed to not be that fond of me. Or need I remind you?" she motioned to the twin bumps on her forehead which at this point had nearly grown into the size of golf balls.

"You look like you're growing horns, it's kinda cool."

"You'd think a cat eating it's own tail would be cool, Goldsworthy." Katie returned, handing the injured girl an ice pack.

"I would not! …okay, I would, but only because that would be awesome in a morbid way."

"Different strokes for different folks. Thanks, Katie." The soccer player mumbled a short 'whatever' before walking off, Kallie following her with her eyes. Eli snickered. "What now?"

"Someone has a crush." A blush shot up onto her cheeks, her answer coming out in a stutter.

"I… I do n-not!" The goth snaked his arm around her shoulder, ending the period much like it had started. "Oh, grasshopper number two. It's okay, you can admit it. And I don't blame you, honestly. She's cute." He patted her once on the shoulder, leaving her there with a reddened face, and an ice pack pressed to her head.


	10. Chapter 10

**Exclaimer: I don't own Degrassi. But I have a new kitty, and his middle name is Mr. Tuxedo Pants. And yes, I am serious. **

**A/N: First off: Yay, Charlie be gone. I am only excited about this because it means I can actually have Charlie exist in this fic, without having to change any aspects about her relationship with Fiona in order for Fallie to eventually occur.**

**Secondly: Chapter 10 already. Woah. I feel accomplished. **

**And finally: It has been pointed out Kallie and Katie couldn't have a ship name. However, I challenge that. I say... Kaltie! ...okay, maybe not, since it sounds too close to "Kalteen" and that reminds me of LiLo puking in Mean Girls. Barlin could work though (Barrera+Matlin) But whatever, the crush is mainly plot device. For what? You'll see later.**

**Timeline: After school that day.**

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><p>The building The Dot was in seemed smaller than Kallie expected, from the things she'd heard over her last two days at Degrassi. Supposedly it held a club for teens above it, but from what the girl could see through the front windows, the upstair's mustn't be very big. Not to say the cafe was small, but it was oddly shaped, and only held about five tables plus the coffee barregister. She supposed if you factored in the kitchen, and perhaps whatever storage rooms or bathrooms there could be on the main level, the level above it could be big enough to house a bustling nightclub.

A girl she faintly recognized as a student of Degrassi exited the cafe, holding open the door to let Kallie past. Casting another searching glance around, she noticed Anya- and thankfully- Fiona just to the right of the door when you were walking in. However, instead of heading towers them and possibly imposing, she walked across to the other side of the coffee shop and took a seat at a table that sat right next to a spotless window. She gazed out of it temporarily, taking in the sight of the entire street, including the comic shop she had been to with Eli and Adam the previous day. It already seemed like a lifetime ago.

The student quickly cleared her head, pulling out the sheets of music she already had with the script she had been handed to by the weird-haired girl that kept popping up everywhere that seemed to know everything about everyone. She recalled how the girl had grinned, holding out the stack of paper, with her eyes raking over Kallie in such a way that made her feel like a bug under a microscope, or worse yet, a body under a coroner's scalpel. The thought sent a shiver down Kallie's spine.

_Imogen Moreno,_ the voice in her head said, _I don't believe I've officially been introduced. Eli Goldsworthy tells me you're officially our composer. I'm supposed to get these to you, they're the ideas from this morning, that have been extended into mostly full plotlines. _She had stopped her there, questioning that she was unaware the girl knew Eli. _Oh yes, I know Eli Goldsworthy very well. He's such a dear, and oh so troubled, but al the best guys are, aren't they? Not that you'd know, given you are a lesbian. _

To say Kallie's jaw had dropped would be an understatement. Obviously Imogen either didn't know what tact meant, or didn't care. Then came the question of how she knew that; had Eli told her? It's not that she cared that someone else knew, but it was kind of her business, and she did care about the possibility that one of her best friends would have told something that important to someone Kallie didn't even really know. But then Imogen had continued, her smile not faltering. _Oh no, Eli Goldsworthy didn't tell me. You did._ At this point she swore her jaw had unhinged itself and was now resting on the floor. _Yesterday, remember? At Sal's comic shop! _

What happened after that, Kallie was still too disturbed to recall, but the exchange didn't go on for much longer. Kallie practically flew out of Degrassi and away towards The Dot before Imogen could even utter a _Goodbye, Kallie Barrera! _In the time that it took to walk from there to The Dot, Kallie had been able to speed through reading the 'improved' version of the mishmash script three times, and she was already almost done reading it for the fourth. Nine of the ideas were still utter crap, and the last one, which had seemed promising this morning, was now lacklustre.

A heavy sigh left her lips, and she got up to walk towards the cash, quickly ordering a London Fog and taking a seat at the bar as she waited. More than a couple times, from her peripheral vision, she noticed Anya and Fiona glancing over at her, Fiona's eyes were saucers while Anya wore a cheshire grin in between bouts of hushed speech which the other raven-haired girl returned, just as quite, but a good deal more harshly, so it came out a low hiss. Kallie nervously fidgeted, wondering what they could be talking about, a paranoid thought invading her mind before she could push it down. They're talking about you. They've realized that you're just a lame dork. Tomorrow, when you go to sit with them at lunch, they're going to snicker and laugh and point- the thought fled as Kallie mentally cursed at it. Of course they didn't think that, and of course they wouldn't.

A mug was set in front of her, a robin's egg blue, and her nervous eyes briefly locked with kind ones belonging to a guy that couldn't be older than twenty. "Hey, you're new. Go to Degrassi?" She nodded slightly, lowering her eyes to her mug, taking a sip. "Someone has their worrying face on. What's up?"

She responded dryly, not really wanting to talk about the insecure thoughts that still poked around at the corners of her mind. Especially not with a complete stranger. "The air, the ceiling, Above The Dot, another ceiling, more air, clouds, the sky, the ozone, outer space, et cetera."

"A wise cracker. Been a while since I've had one of those. Well alright, if you don't want to talk, I will. I'm Peter. I go to Toronto University. Formerly Degrassi's most awesome student, but that's just between you and me. Wouldn't want to bruise any egos, now would we?" A small smile appeared on her face, "There we go. A happy customer is a paying customer. …if you catch my drift."

"Oh, shit. Sorry," Kallie hurriedly pulled a five out of her pocket and handed it to him. "Sorry, sorry. I'm… sorry."

"So I've heard." He grinned. "It's no problem, really. And if you ever want to talk, Miss Mysterious Mopey Girl, I'm here."

"Kallie." Peter nodded, sliding the five into the register.

"I'm gonna call you Mysterious Mopey Girl anyways."

Suddenly Kallie noticed Fiona standing next to her, looking like the poster child for nervousness. "Am I interrupting?" Kallie shook her head, and Fiona ventured again, "Can I sit?"

"I don't know, can you?" she smiled, and sat.

* * *

><p>The Dot, as per usual, was pretty much packed as Fiona and Anya entered the establishment which had been a grill once upon a time. Of course, that had been before certain someones had nearly burnt it down. Now though, the owner of the place had banned anything that started with the letters 'G-R' which sucked if you wanted to order grapes or grain, Fiona had once sarcastically quipped. Now though, her mood was much more solemn as she and Anya took a seat at their regular table.<p>

Of course skipping would backfire- why wouldn't it? She had to have had the worst luck a person that didn't believe in luck _could_ have. Thankfully though, Charlie had left before her mom had entered full-on lecture mode. On top of making her sit through the entire speech, she had made her go back for the final two periods as well, which was pretty well pointless since it was French- which she was already fluent in- and History- which she already almost completely knew.

All she had wanted to do was go to The Dot with Holly J and complain about her horrible day; the redhead always let Fiona rant when she needed to. Of course though, she had her stupid dialysis. Not to say that Fiona didn't want Holly J to get better, it was just… inconvenient. But at least she had Anya, who had thankfully forgiven her for her comments on Owen.

Anya slid a copper coin towards Fiona, giggling slightly.

"Penny for my thoughts. Ha, ha." she mused, handing the cent back to Anya. "I was just thinking about how much today sucked."

"I'm sure it wasn't _that _bad." Fiona stared blankly at Anya, the look blatantly stating that it really had been _that_ bad. "Okay, so maybe it was. But it could have been prevented. I mean, who cares about one bitchy junior? And speaking of juniors, specifically of the non-bitchy variety..," she trailed off, discreetly motioning to behind Fiona with a short, low whistle. The other girl quickly turned her head, and she was back looking at Anya within a fraction of a second. Fiona really was the master of the look-but-don't-look, a title that was shared with Holly J.

"It's Kallie." Fiona's eyes were wide, and she quickly glanced over her shoulder again. "And she's sitting down at a table!"

"Gee Sherlock, what an amazing deduction." The corners of Fiona's mouth turned downwards and she hissed out a reply.

"Shut up, you came in my bed."

"Ew, it sounds nauseating when you say it like that. And watch it with the pissy attitude, I was only joking."

"It should sound nauseating, because it's freakin' true. You know how much those space-foam mattresses cost? A lot!" she sighed, then back-pedalled. "Sorry, it's just, things suck today and they sucked pretty much all week too, and it's just sucking, and the last thing I needed was to be reminded of another problem I have."

"What other problem?"

"Uh, hello? Pedophile-me?"

"That's pedo-shaming. Pedophillia is the attraction to a pre-pubescent child from an adult. Clearly she isn't pre-pubescent, thus you are not a pedophile. Problem solved!"

"Problem not solved. Why can't I get crushes on people I have chances with? My straight best friend, a model in college, and now a girl I barely know that's three years younger than me that's in all likelihood straight."

"Well some of that may not be true. I mean you must have some sorta subconscious gaydar. Between Riley, Adam, and Charlie, you picked them pretty well for their various uses."

"Bearding and/or flings, you mean?" Anya reluctantly nodded, and Fiona continued. "I suppose it's possible that she is lesbian- _a _lesbian, god why do I keep doing that?- or even bisexual, but I know all of nothing about her. I've barely had one conversation with her, so it's not like I could make a call yet."

"Then go talk to her!" Anya grinned, giving Fi a double-thumbs up which obviously did nothing to encourage Fiona, who rather resembled an owl.

"Are you out of your mind! I can't talk to her, at least not alone! I suck at small talk and making friends!"

"Well then, make big talk and make a girlfriend."

"See, this is why Holly J holds the title of best friend currently. You're insane!"

"No, I'm smart, now go before I drag you over there." Anya fixed her gaze on Fiona, who reluctantly stood and walked over to Kallie, unable to stop fidgeting or remember what she usually did with her hands.

"Am I interrupting?" A shake of the head. "Can I sit?"

"I don't know, can you?" Fiona instantly felt better upon hearing the other student's voice, and upon discovering that her suspicions had been correct yesterday; Kallie wielded sarcasm quite well. She sat down next to the sandy-haired teen, rapidly realizing she had no idea what to talk about. Thankfully, Kallie quickly took the reigns in the conversation, smirking. "Where were you today, we had a date, remember?"

"W-What?" Stuttering. Well that's certainly smooth of you. Why not just say 'Hi, I'm crush, I have a Fiona on you.', after all, that would probably be less embarrassing.

"Lunch, remember? If I recall, I said 'see you at lunch', and then you said 'count on it'. I'm in the millions."

"Huh?" Fiona felt like slapping herself. 'What' and 'huh'. Dust mites were better conversationalists.

"Did you hear that, I believe it was the sound of that joke going over your head. Count on it… counting… ha-ha? Now you laugh so I don't look like a complete freak and/or idiot?" Laughter erupted, but it wasn't from either girl as they both looked across the cafe at Anya, who was beside herself. Quickly, she clammed up, squeaking out an apology. Fiona stood up.

"Yeah, ok, I'm gonna go away, and then walk over so we can start over." She did just that, slipping back into the seat next to Kallie. "Hi my name is Fiona, I believe my one-track mind sort of forgot I agreed to lunch. I skipped."

"That much I knew already, some wire-haired chick told me and Holly J you left during Drama and never came back."

"So you saw her too, glad I'm not crazy and just imagining the chick. Anyways, I went for lunch then didn't really feel like coming back. It's sort of depressing being there, it just reminds me that my only friends are graduating, and I'm not, and I'm going to be stuck with a bunch of freaks or people that all but ignore me next year."

"Hey! I take personal offence to that. We're not all freaks." she paused, "Okay, but we're not all _bad_ freaks. You'll have me, for one. Which means you automatically inherit Eli." Fiona winced. "What is it?"

"Well, me and Eli are on not-so-excellent terms. I kind of broke his best friend Adam's heart."

"Oh. Well shit, I think I just found myself with divorced parent syndrome." At Fiona's quizzical expression that probably meant she was doubting Kallie's sanity, she continued on. "I'm friends with both you and Adam. You two aren't on good terms, apparently. Thus, divorced parent syndrome. Again."

"Again?"

"I'm also friends with both Clare and Eli. Which is even more awkward, but at least Adam's in the same boat there."

"Well Adam's a pretty forgiving guy, as you've probably discovered. His is a heart as good as gold, and if he's willing to make things minimally awkward, I am as well." Fiona extended her hand, picking up Kallie's mug of tea and taking a long sip before returning it.

"Now you owe me a tea _and _lunch." she joked, picking up the mug and taking a drink of her own, seemingly unaffected by Fiona's previous action.

"I'll just have to make it up to you somehow one of these days." Kallie faced forewords, mug warming her hands as her gaze slid to Fiona.

"I'll think of some way, eventually."

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><p><strong>AN 2: I know that the ending of this chapter pretty much sucked, but I tried to make it longer since I won't be updating for another couple of days (I'm going to be partying like it's my birthday, so take that Allstar Weekend) but I will still be writing when I get a chance to, so hopefully after I'm back from my mini-hiatus there will be multiple updates a day for a couple of days. **


	11. Chapter 11

**Exclaimer: I still own nothing.**

**A/N: So, my updates will hopefully becoming more frequently (maybe multiple a day) from now on, due to U Don't Know giving me mad scientist ideas on all fronts. All I'll say is Kallie's dad may or may not be a redhead… =x**

**Timeline: After Cry Me A River/Dirt Off Your Shoulder**

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><p>The next few days passed almost too quickly, as if they had intentionally been shortened to contrast Kallie's first two days, which had seemed all but endless. Of course, even though she'd been at Degrassi less than a week, she knew by now the different between short and uneventful; the previous days had been proof to that. As if Adam being called a tranny over Degrassi's airwaves hadn't been enough (and she still held a grudge against Dave for that, even if Adam had eventually forgiven him), Clare had also come practically begging Kallie to talk to Katie and get her a second chance to prove herself, though the athlete could hardly be called more than Kallie's acquaintance. Then of course, to top it all off, the crazy chick- also known as Imogen- somehow weaselled her way into Eli's life and convinced him to stop taking his medication.<p>

It hadn't been all bad though, for one thing, she became much closer to Katie, Adam, and Fiona those days, and if Eli was more himself she was sure he would have called it 'wizardry!'. It wasn't lost on her that it was unlikely at best for anyone to befriend three people who were so different, and nearly impossible to actually get them to talk and become more or less friends. However, she did, and she had.

Kallie meandered into the Zen Garden, smiling at Adam whom had already arrived. It had quickly become a routine for she and Adam to meet during their spares along with Eli, but due to recent events his place had been taken by Fiona and Katie, who conveniently also shared a spare with them. Kallie had made sure of this in Fiona's case by quickly glancing at her schedule one day, she felt strangely protective of the other girl, and the last thing she wanted was Fiona to have to stay at Degrassi longer than she already had to due to skipping.

The brunette took a seat next to Adam, noticing he was doing some Math homework, and seemingly having trouble with one question. She nudged him lightly with her elbow, causing him to start as he hadn't noticed her arrival.

"You forgot to do exponents before division and multiplication." Adam's gaze shot up at her, then down to his homework in a double take before lightly slamming the heel of his hand into his forehead. He flipped his pencil around, erasing his work and quickly redid it.

"Thanks, I'm such a ditz when it comes to math sometimes." Kallie smirked, noticing from the corner of her eye Katie had just entered the garden.

"Oh, don't thank me. Thank Katie. If not for her, I would fall asleep in half of my math periods." the new arrival quickly clued in to what they were talking about, likely largely due to Adam's still-open math textbook.

"Damn straight she would, her elementary school math teachers must have told her to count sheep instead of birds on a fence." Katie said this with such a straight face, and with so little humour in her voice, it was hard not to crack up. It was something that happened quite frequently, even when Katie said things that weren't at all funny. It was sort of like how you can't help but grin when someone's talking to you about something really very serious. You shouldn't be smiling, but you did anyways.

Katie huffed at them, and took a seat next to Kallie, causing Adam to secretly grin at her and get a half-glare half-eyeroll in return. It was no secret between the two that they were both mildly crushing on the soccer player, and they both used it to embarrass each other at any chance they got. Needless to say, Kallie was glad Adam didn't know she knew his history- or most of it- with Fiona, or about her crush on her, that although no bigger than her one on Katie, was much different in it's intensity and the way it manifested itself.

While her crush on Katie was the usual kind that involved ogling her when she wasn't looking, an inability to do anything less than grin in her presence, and getting more than a little nervous when she talked to her, her crush on Fiona was completely different. Instead, she found herself much bolder when she was around her, going so far as to flirt in a completely blatant way that she supposed was so obvious no one guessed at it. Not only that, but she found that at times when she became really bold, which was mostly when it was just the two of them, Fiona's flustered nature suggested that her feelings may very well be reciprocated.

Quite loudly, Fiona burst into the garden, instantly turning it's name oxymoronic. "Sorry I'm late, I had this _thing_ with the _thing_ in the _thing_ and it couldn't really wait because it's a bitch-" Katie interjected dryly, her monotone the perfect contrast to Fiona's nervous and rushed speech.

"You mean your period?" the girl's flush answered that question, and Kallie swatted the other girl's arm, a faint smirk threatening to burst to the surface.

"It's okay Fi." Kallie said.

"Yeah, we know how it is. We're all females here." Adam helpfully offered, though the both strange and amused looks on all their faces told him it hadn't exactly supplied it's intended comforting affect. He quietly added after a few long moments, "Well it's true."

Fiona stood there for a few more moments before quickly sitting down next to Katie, looking over at the girl to the other side of her. "Hey Kal, we still on for this weekend?"

"Of course, as if I could miss mass monster movie might." It took her a few seconds to realize her mistake, which she then embarrassedly corrected, "Erm, night. Too many 'M's. I blame the english language."

"Happens to the best of us, believe me, that's not as embarrassing as half my flubs. Are you sure you can't come though, Katie?" The brunette shook her head.

"Doubtful, I have practice on Sunday, and need to write an editorial on Saturday for next week's paper. One runs late, one runs early, so unless you guys know how to warp time so I can stop working at eleven, watch five hours worth of monster movies, get up at six, and still get seven hours of sleep, no way it'll happen."

"Well, what if you do the editorial sooner, or later?" Adam piped in, though it was half-hearted.

"Homework and helping Marisol with homework on Friday, volunteering at the animal shelter on Sunday afternoon, and I have to revise everything Clare's done so far on Monday morning in order to publish everything by Monday at lunch." Kallie chewed on her lip thoughtfully, rolling an idea over in her head. She knew it was doubtful, but…

"What if I write your editorial? I know I'm not on the paper, and it's usually done by the editor, but if we turn the mass monster movie night into a mass movie monster matinee, you'd be able to get more sleep than you would be able to alternatively. I'll write the editorial on Friday, and have it to you by then."

"You're insane, but alright. I swear though, if you mess up the editorial, so help me…"

"I won't. Scout's honour!"

"You were a girl scout?" Fiona questioned.

"Not a chance, but I'm a sucker for the cookies."

"Who isn't? Those things taste like angels danced on them barefoot."

"You're an odd one, Adam." Fiona screwed up her face as she was undoubtedly bombarded with the mental picture.

"That's what makes me so undeniably fantastic, Miss Coyne."

"Of course you are. So I guess mass movie monster matinee is a go. Ten o'clock, my place?" the other two girls and Adam agreed, with Katie quickly briefing Kallie on what would be required in the editorial, pausing every few seconds to remind her the various things that would happen to her if she screwed it up. Finally, Katie finished her speech, her blue eyes narrowed as if to tell Kallie she was serious, though the junior didn't much need the reminder.

The rest of the day slipped by with relative ease, for once, drama seemed to be lacking within Degrassi's halls. Though she had bumped into Clare at the end of the day, worriedly holding an empty bottle of pills which she had revealed to be Eli's, which more than worried both of them. Kallie comforted Clare and told her she'd keep an eye on Eli the next few days, before they parted ways.


	12. Chapter 12

**Exclaimer: Dear Degrassi, I don't own you. Just like I did yesterday. But I hope one day I can own you, so that I can just have Annie make out with Charlotte all day. And maybe have a Palex reunion. Sincerely, a lonely fangirl.**

**Timeline: Between Dirt Off Your Shoulder/Paper Planes**

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><p>The brisk rap came at the door not a second past ten. Fiona's eyes instinctively rolled as she called out from her room.<p>

"Come in, Katie!" She quickly scavenged through her closet, frantically searching for the last piece of her outfit. Finally, she spotted the illusive pale blue top she was looking for, her fingers lightly tugging the silk number off the hanger. "I'm just finishing getting ready, get yourself something to drink. Or eat. Or just sit down or stand somewhere, whatever!"

"Wardrobe troubles?" The voice came startlingly close to behind Fiona, causing her to start. A glance over her shoulder revealed instead of Katie, as she had assumed, it was Adam.

"Uh… yeah. Hey, Adam. Sorry, I thought you were Katie due to the punctuality and all."

"No problem." He glanced at Fiona's bed, where the rest of the clothes were strewn. "Uh, foot high heels aren't gonna impress Kallie. Go for flats or sneakers." Adam winked at her shocked face. "When you like someone, you're not exactly great at hiding it. I mean, we have Holly J as exhibit A."

"You don't think she knows, do you?" Fiona worriedly questioned, quickly putting the pair of heels back in her closet and fishing out a pair of black flats instead. "The most casual I have. …I need to order some converse. What's her favourite colour? Print? High-tops or low? What's her opinion on custom-made laces?" Her phone was already out of her pocket and in her hand, and she was halfway through dialling when Adam placed a hand over hers, stopping her.

"Just relax and slow down. In order: I doubt she knows, Sea Foam Green, Plaid, High, Unnecessary and the most important thing of all for you to know… you're overthinking everything. Just be yourself, there's no need for super fancy shoes, nor her shoe of choice." Fiona slowly lowered her phone, nodding to herself.

"Okay. Thanks Adam, you're the world's best matchmaker. Remind me to help hook you up with a hot chick, too." He smirked.

"We'll see. Now get dressed, you're running late."

* * *

><p>Ten minutes after Fiona had made the last adjustments to her outfit, Katie arrived with Kallie just a few steps behind. They had bumped into each other on the way up, and the journalist immediately read through Kallie's finished editorial in the middle of the stairwell, which was why they were late. Apparently the editorial was brilliant, because it had earned a curt nod, smile, and friendly pat on the shoulder from Katie. Shoulder pats from Katie, Adam informed Fiona and Kallie while the other girl was in the washroom, were a rare sign of affection towards her journalists and were roughly the equivalent of winning a couple million dollars in the lottery. Adam's colourful exaggeration caused Kallie to tut.<p>

"What? I'm a radio-show host. Stretching the truth is what I do."

"I'm pretty sure that's story tellers, Adam." Katie returned, slipping in between Fiona and Adam on the couch as the hostess of the movie marathon tapped the play button on the remote. As the opening credits to Stephen King's _It_ rolled, Adam quickly hopped out of his place to flick off the lights.

Not even ten minutes into the movie, Fiona's hand was already tightly gripping Kallie's, horror painted plainly over her too-pale face. She had turned quickly at the very beginning of the movie, hissing out between her teeth at Adam. _You didn't tell me this had crazy killer clowns in it!_

_ Clown, _Kallie had offered, _it's just the one. And even he isn't a clown. …not really, anyways._

_I don't care, I hate clowns._ And just like that, the tone for the entire marathon's atmosphere was set with Fiona's blatant fear, Adam's quick chuckle, and Katie's insistence that there was no way the events of the movie could actually occur. It didn't seem to matter though, how many times Adam laughed at the lame special effects, or how many times Katie pointed out that a six-foot clown couldn't squeeze himself out of a drain with a three inch diameter, or even how many times Kallie allowed the senior to bury her face in the crook of her neck, Fiona was as horrified as a person could be at a movie made over two decades ago.

Finally, the nearly 200 minute movie was over, and despite the three's offers to scrap the rest of the movie 'night', Nightmare on Elm Street was popped into the player, and the entire process began again, and this time several times throughout the movie Fiona came close to screaming, which caused a bright blush to settle on her face- clearly she was even more horrified at the fact she couldn't handle her horror flicks than she was at the movies themselves. The situation wasn't helped at all by Adam's laughter after nearly every squeak his ex uttered, but all the same, Kallie offered her sympathetic smiles at regular intervals.

The highlight of the marathon came near the end of their third movie, however. About ten minutes to the movie's end, Katie had crept out of the room, and five minutes later, she returned with a hockey mask and plastic machete. From her position half-laying on the couch with Fiona huddled into a little ball leaning into her, Kallie was the first to notice the athlete as she snuck up to Adam. His scream as he turned around to see who or what was breathing on his neck put any of Fiona's previous squeals to shame, and earned Katie a high five from the other junior.

"That was seriously classic. I should have thought of bringing that stuff." Kallie mused as Katie prepared to depart. Adam had left about twenty minutes ago, muttering something about meeting with Eli, though without question, it was a half-truth at best to excuse Adam from any further teasing from the girls. They almost felt bad, but then again, he had it coming to him for laughing at Fi, Kallie figured. "I didn't know you were a prankster."

"I'm usually not, but it's better to be prepared and not end up needing it, than needing it and not being prepared, right?" Fiona nodded, still a little bit spooked from the movies, though she'd never admit to it.

"Thanks for coming, Katie."

"My pleasure, maybe next time we have a movie marathon we'll do romantic comedies instead." The offer was immediately followed with vigorous nodding on Fiona's part, and she looked a good deal more relieved as she walked back into the living room with Kallie than when she walked out of it. The girls lazily slumped onto the couch, instinctively leaning shoulder-to-shoulder.

"I'm gonna have nightmares tonight, that's for sure."

"Sorry. If I knew that…"

"I was a big fat wuss? Gosh, you probably think I'm pathetic."

"As if. Horror just isn't your genre, it's not like you're the only person in the world to get a bit freaked." Fiona chuckled.

"A _bit?_"

"Okay, well a lot. It just takes a little getting used to is all. Believe me, I used to be terrified of them too. Then again, I was five when I watched my first sorority-slasher…"

"Five?" the disbelief in her voice was obvious, until a thought occurred to her. "Then again, I did meet the Queen when I was five." Kallie playfully elbowed her in the ribs.

"You did not!"

"You're right, it was the president of the United States, and I was nine." The other girl seemed to mentally make a calculation before pulling a face.

"Gross, no offence to you Americans, but who'd want to ever meet George Bush?"

"Believe me, I'm not the biggest fan of him either." They lapsed into a comfortable silence for a few minutes, the only sounds the ones of their harmonizing breath and the slow tick of a nearby clock before Fiona spoke, so softly Kallie almost had to strain to hear it. "You should stay over today- tonight. I have some stuff you can borrow, and an extra toothbrush and stuff. That is, if you want to, of course. It's just, I'd like you to meet my roommate. And of course spend more time with you too, and… sorry. I'm rambling. I get nervous sometimes."

Kallie's hand silently found the other brunette's, and a smile was shared between them. "I'd love to, Fiona."


	13. Chapter 13: Interlude, Part I

**Exclaimer: If anyone reading this has not yet realized I don't own Degrassi, I am sorry to inform you that you mustn't be the brightest bulb in the lightbulb factory.**

**A/N: This, and the next couple of chapters, are a bit shorter, so double/triple update today. Yay?**

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><p>Kallie stared up at the ceiling, one arm resting behind her neck while the other lazily played with the hem of the nightshirt she wore. The silken fabric felt strange against her skin, it's delicate and cool texture was much different than the flannel of her usual sleep-clothes, though it was not altogether unwelcome. She sat up slowly, grey eyes staring at the door as it opened inward. Fiona appeared in the doorframe, quickly slipping into the room and shutting the door behind her with a soft <em>click<em>.

"Sorry, Charlie crashed on the couch. I had to wake her up. She must've had a long day." Fiona half-whispered as she slipped into her bed opposite Kallie. Her eyes quickly dipped down and back up at Kallie's face. "I see my things fit alright."

The junior nodded in confirmation, her fingers finally pausing in their anxious motions across the material of the shirt. Her eyes gazed down at herself, seeing where the black silk gave way to slightly loose grey boxer-shorts, made of the same material. "Yeah. The shorts are just a little big around the waist, and a little short, but aside from that they fit well."

A thoughtful sound came from the back of Fiona's throat as she silently agreed. "I noticed you had longer legs than me." It took a brief moment for Fiona to realize what she had said, before she immediately wished she could reach out and yank the words back into her mouth. _That sounded a lot__ more gay than I meant it to. _She winced slightly, but if Kallie noticed that or the odd wording of her previous statement, she didn't show it. Instead, she rolled over onto her side, head propped up on her elbow, now she stared intently at Fiona.

"You don't make sense to me."

Surprise rippled across her face, and Fiona blinked. "What exactly do you mean by that?" the query came hesitantly, as if she were slightly afraid of whatever the answer would be.

"I've seen you at school- how you act around people you don't know. If they're your peers, or threaten you, I guess, you're so nervous around them. But if they're younger, and I supposed you could even say, weaker, you're completely harsh and cruel." Kallie sighed, and Fiona was just about to speak up when she continued on. "But you're a completely different person at other times. You're not the fight-or-flight kind of girl you are at school, you're kind, and sincere, and so full of love, and so… _so afraid_." Now Kallie gingerly reached out with her free hand, lightly touching Fiona's shoulder. She didn't miss the wince, though it was almost undetectable. If she had been speaking softly before, she was less-than-whispering now. "What hurt you so much, Fiona?"

Such a simple question, yet it was so complicated. Fiona supposed she could blame it all on Bobby, but she was broken even before then. Was it the fact she was the quieter twin, and was so often overshadowed? That for years all that was expected of her was to find a nice, rich man, marry him, have kids, and rule Manhattan with him, but even that she couldn't do? Her constant aloneness, even when she was at the centre of attention? Maybe it was none of those things, or maybe it was all of them. Maybe it was things that had happened even longer ago, that she had buried so deeply into her mind that she couldn't reach even if she tried, things she had never told anyone.

But for now, the first thing that had come to mind was the thing she told Kallie. "Near the beginning of the year… there was this guy I was seeing, and he hurt me. Physically. He grabbed me, slapped me, even pushed me down the stairs once." Kallie's hand, still gently resting on Fiona's shoulder, drifted up to brush away the tears Fiona hadn't known she had been shedding. "He almost got away with it too, but this girl- a girl I had pretty much hated before then- came forwards and said he hit her too. Just once, but he had. If it wasn't for her…"

Kallie nodded, her arms encircling the other girl, whose face, still damp with tearstains, was pressed into her neck. And like that they remained, until they succumbed to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14: Interlude, Part II

**A/N: More Creepy!Dreamness ahead. =B**

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><p><em>Dark. A small light lingers ahead, dimly dancing through the air. A firefly, perhaps? No… not at all. The beam of a flashlight, she realized it now. Suddenly, the flashlight stopped in it's motion towards her. It turned, the beam cutting through the complete black. It fell on something- someone? She wasn't entirely sure, only that it was moving. Was that slight movement it's breath? She didn't think so, though she could not be certain. She strained to look, to see what it was, but then the beam of light shot back towards her.<em>

_It was moving much more quickly now, and the dead silence was broken by the sounds of footfalls and panting. Quieter though, there were other sounds. _Was that the sound of scrabbling claws?_ The thought danced in her mind for a moment before it was snatched away by instinct as the beam of light passed. For a split second she could see someone running right by her. A girl, that she knew. One with long hair. What was she running from? _That _thing_ of course, you idiot! _Before she could register the thought that seemed almost foreign within her head, a heavy weight hit her and sent her sprawling._

_ For just a moment, before the shock cleared, all she could register was the feel of the ground. Grass? She felt the side of her pinky finger and hand against something smooth and solid, her fingers instinctively reaching out towards it, clutching it. Then, the second had passed, and the _thing's _face was inches from hers. And still she could barely make it out. Red eyes, short and coarse black fur, broad shoulders, glistening white teeth… it pinned her down, screaming at her._

_ She raised the hand in which she held the thing- a rock, she could scarcely see it, only it's outline, but it felt like a rock- but couldn't bring herself to bring it down on the thing's head. It was as if her entire arm had been dipped in a bucket of ice water for an hour, she couldn't feel or do a thing. And then, the light came back, it's wielder shoving the beast off of her. It flung itself at her, the flashlight flew out of her hands and for a short moment illuminated them both._

_ At first, all she could comprehend was in that brief passage of time, she had seen two girls. The first, barely into her teens. She was of average height, but lanky, with defiant eyes and red hair that cascaded to her waist. The second appeared in the girl's place just a moment later, her dark, curly hair blocking her face. They both seemed painfully familiar, but she couldn't place either. And then, in that infinite second, her eyes flicked to the other participant of the brawl._

_ The monster was a man._


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Here you go. Third update of the day. I apologize in advance if my explanation of night terrors offends anybody who has had them- for my purposes in this story, they have been slightly warped.**

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><p>When Kallie came to, the first thing she noticed was she didn't know where she was. It was dark, and a heavy weight pressed against her stomach. <em>-<em>suddenly the room was flooded with painful bright, causing a hoarse cry to burst out from her lips. She found it odd that her throat was sore, but for the moment that was the last thing on her mind as she writhed against the thing holding her down. She pushed it off of her, quickly flipping it onto it's back. Straddling across it, her gaze was terrified but triumphant as she looked down at the _thing-_

-Fiona.

Suddenly, whatever previous thought that had been going through Kallie's head was gone, had fled, back into the realm of dream as she quizzically looked at Fiona. Despite what had just happened, the girl's blue-grey orbs were filled with nothing but concern and compassion.

Once more, Kallie wondered at where she was, before she glanced over at the woman in the doorway and it all came flooding back.

_Hi, I'm Kallie. You must Fiona's roommate, Charlie. It's a pleasure to meet you-_

_ Mister Tuxedo Pants, give my scarf back RIGHT NOW!-_

_ Holly J just called, she needs me to pick her up from dialysis. Why don't you and Kallie-_

_ Ugh, I've eaten enough sushi to feed a small army. Fiona here always has king-sized feasts, you ought to come over more often to help us-_

_ Will these pyjamas be good enough? They're the most you-ish things I own-_

Kallie realized her breathing was extremely laboured, and she tried to calm it by some degree before releasing Fiona's wrists and rolling off of her. Charlie hesitantly walked over from her place half-in half-out of the room, taking a position standing near the corner of the large bed.

"What happened?" she asked almost before she had even thought of asking for the details, and as she spoke her raw throat became painfully evident.

Charlie was the first to respond, as Fiona was still lying where Kallie had pinned her, though the shock was starting to wear off. "Not a clue. I woke up and someone- you I guess- was screaming. I thought you were being chopped into tiny pieces by an axe-murderer or something." Right as she finished, Kallie thought she could dimly remember waking up in a fit, but it was blurry, as if it were a memory she had from years prior, and she had forgotten all of the details, but remembered why the event was so important.

"Before that," Fiona had sat up and moved over to where Kallie sat at the edge of the bed. "You had been squirming really badly in your sleep. I'm kind of a light sleeper sometimes, and we had turned into a human knot during the night, so I woke up right away. You were sweating." Kallie realized that she still was, her hand stroking her damp neck in something like wonder. "And then you woke up, and you just starting howling. It wasn't even screaming it was like… I don't even know what it was like."

Kallie's eyes closed as if she had been stricken. And she had been, in a way, but with a revelation. She cursed softly, and although she was sure Charlie couldn't hear it, Fiona must've picked it up.

"Kal.., what is it? What just… what just happened?"

"Night terrors." The two words seemed strange as they floated in the air, as if she had accidentally spoken them in another language, but she knew she had not. "Kind of, at least."

"Like nightmares, you mean?" Charlie's question was innocent enough, and she hadn't been the first person to ask Kallie that, nor would she be the last.

"No. Much worse. I mean, at least I think so… I can never remember what they are." As she talked, she distantly realized she was clinging to Fiona's hand. Her palm was warm against Kallie's almost impossibly cool one. "I've had them off and on since she- I mean, since _I _was six. Usually night terrors are random and brought on by stress. Quite common in little kids. But I've been having them chronically for years. Or at least, I had been. I haven't had any I'm aware of for three years now."

"And after you woke up?"

"Sometimes terrors leak into the real world after the person awakens. It's not that surprising, if you think about it. Having such a scare, then waking up disoriented… there's been a couple famous cases where the person afflicted with the terror runs out straight into traffic."

"Oh god," Both of the other girls' faces paled as they no doubt imagined someone so confused and horrified running straight into the path of a truck. After both of them had seemingly recovered from the visual, Charlie took a seat on the edge of the bed next to the both of them.

"What time is it?" Kallie's sudden question caught Charlie off guard as she quickly glanced around before locating a clock.

"4:32, hon." The brunette softly nodded, now turning to Fiona.

"Sorry I tackled-and-pinned you."

"You're forgiven on one condition."

"What's this 'condition'?"

"You forgive me for my first thought after waking up." Both Charlie's and Kallie's faces were completely perplexed.

"What was the thought?" Fiona turned red.

"Please don't ask."


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Sorry this one is shorter than usual and the update came a little late in the day, things were pretty hectic here today. =/ Hopefully the fluffiness makes up for it? =D**

**Timeline: During Paper Planes Part 1**

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><p>Kallie groaned, blinking harshly at the sun streaming through the front doors of Degrassi. Her eyelids fluttered open, immediately snapping closed again, her hand flying to her scalding forehead. The warmth emanating from her skull was so intense that she quickly retracted her palm with a slight wince.<p>

Why had she been dumb enough to drag herself out of bed this morning? Of course the answers were of no surprise. For one, there was the school play, and keeping an eye on Eli whom was no double doing much worse than she was. Also, Kallie couldn't help but admit a certain raven-haired girl had played a part in her decision wether or not to call in sick. And so, here she was, waiting just inside the doors to the school, awaiting the girl's arrival.

However, more or less unexpectedly, Kallie spotted Anya first. What was even more unexpected was that she looked like she had been run over by a truck. Her thoughts of Fiona gone for the meantime, the brunette quickly walked over to her friend, concerned. That concern was magnified when Anya looked up at Kallie, and she saw the senior looked even worse up close.

"Kal! Hey, hi."

"Geez Anh, no offence but you look like death."

"I'm very much aware of that, but frankly you don't look much better."

"I'm also aware of that. I've gotten no sleep this weekend, and what sleep I did get ended with me straddling Fiona." Kallie sighed, her statement causing Anya to nearly have a heart attack.

"What did I miss?"

It suddenly occurred to Kallie what she had just said could- and had- been completely misconstrued, her eyes widening as she back-pedalled. "Oh, god no, not like that! It was… it's just a long story."

Anya burst into a fit of giggles. "I want to hear all the juicy details later."

Fiona's voice came startlingly close behind them, causing Kallie to jump. "What's this about juice?"

"Oh nothing, just that you and Kallie apparently had an interesting adventure this weekend. What does Charlie think of this?"

The girl shrugged. "She was pretty ok with it, considering we woke her up."

If it was possible for Kallie to get any paler, she would have as Anya burst into loud laughter, the sound completely contradicting her ragged appearance. Now though, Kallie squeaked out a reply, effectively changing the subject. "Sooo, Anya, what did you get up to this weekend?"

"Nothing much. Well…" Anya paused as she mulled it over. "You guys promise you won't freak out?" They briefly exchanged a glance, confusion and curiosity on their faces. They nodded. "I tried coke."

"Oh. Okay."

"Anya, you know how dangerous that is?"

Once again they glanced at each other, their simultaneous answers both throwing the other off.

"Wait, 'Okay'? Fiona, coke is… well, coke!"

"I know, but there are worse things, at least she didn't do crystal meth like Peter," Kallie had a brief moment in which she realized why the name was familiar, and realization dawned on her face. "and _you_ promised you wouldn't freak out."

"Guys," Anya interjected. "It's okay. I know it was stupid and I have no intention of ever doing it again."

Kallie let out a sound of relief that wasn't quite a sigh. "Good, because if you did, I'd have to kick your ass." She paused, sizing Anya up. "Or maybe get Adam to do it."

"Katie would do a better job I think, considering Adam's easier to scare than a kindergartener."

"Okay, I'll definitely need you guys to fill me in later on. I feel so out of the loop."

Shortly later, Anya had left them to get to her first block class on the other side of the school. Kallie and Fiona, whose respective classes were just up the hall, lingered for a short time in comfortable silence before they took a seat on a nearby bench. The silence continued for a while more, broken finally by Fiona's soft exhale. It was odd, how that one sigh held more meaning than the greatest speech in the world could; it was the sound of someone utterly content and happy with their life in that moment. It was the sound of a smile.


	17. Chapter 17

**Timeline: Sometime between when Eli informed Fiona she had bedbugs, and before the volleyball tournament started.**

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><p>"I just can't believe it. <em>Bedbugs<em>, Kallie. It's disgusting!"

The two girls laid side by side in the zen garden, a picnic blanket resting under them. They had most of the afternoon off- free blocks, cancelled drama and gym classes, and the volleyball tourney meant that each of them had only had a single class after lunch, and then the rest of the day was pretty much theirs. And so, Kallie had suggested a picnic for just the two of them, seeing as Katie needed to go over some things for the paper, and then participate in the tournament, and both Adam and Eli had shot out of the building quicker than you could say "video games and comic books, ho!". The picnic was quickly agreed to, Fiona had needed something to distract her from her crisis, and Kallie was glad to help. Plus, she was beginning to run out of responses to: _Bedbugs! Do you know they have eyes? _

"It'll be okay, besides, there are worse things."

"Name one."

"Applying to only one university because of your mom and a cute guy, then not getting in, and lying to everyone about it, then getting so stressed out you try cocaine just so you don't have to think about it?" Fiona rolled over onto her side, propping herself up with an arm and looking down at Kallie, who looked quite smug.

"You're too clever for your own good, do you know that?" She sighed and laid back down, lazily gazing at the clouds. "Okay, so you're right. I am being a bit over-dramatic."

"I wouldn't go as far as that, but like I said: there are worse things." Fiona hummed in agreement, her eyes fluttering closed as the sun warmed her porcelain skin. The other girl stared at her serene expression for a few minutes before turning her attention to the sky. "I'm so going to burn."

"Hmm?" came her lazy reply, a drowsy query joining it soon after. "What do you mean, your skin tone is way darker than mine. If anyone's gonna burn, it'd be me."

"Ahh, but that's where you're wrong. Believe me, just because I got the spanish skin tone going on, doesn't mean I burn less quickly. My mom's a ginger, you know. An irish ginger, which may very well be worse. So basically I burn quicker than a vampire under a magnifying glass."

"You're kidding." Fiona's gaze slid over to her while she still remained flat on her back. "Drat, why does everyone I know burn so easily? I need a sun-bathing buddy."

"Try Eli. Pale as he is, he doesn't seem allergic to the sun's rays. I'm sure Imogen would appreciate a little bit of a tan, too."

"The freaky girl with weird hair and rhyming tendencies?"

"One and the same. She has quite the crush on Elijah. It's kinda cute, in an obsessive way."

"I'll take your word for it. Hey, you're going to the tournament, right?"

"You bet. How come?"

"I've gotta leave early to meet pest control. You mind reminding Holly J not to strain or overwork herself?" The way Fiona's gaze softened as she asked this would have made it impossible for Kallie to say no, even if she didn't want to. Of course though, she would never dream of declining, so she nodded, amused as Fiona's face turned from one of concerned seriousness to childlike glee. The girl quickly sat up, pulling Kallie up with her and gave her a rib-breaking squeeze that was somehow still amorous, though she might've imagined it. What she certainly didn't imagine on the other hand, was Fiona's lips brushing against her cheek. They were gone not a moment later, and Fiona had gotten to her feet.

"Thank you _so_ much, Kal." The brunette nodded again, this time much more numbly than when she had agreed to watch and caution Holly J. Fiona wrapped her in another hug, this one less bone-crushing and more friendly, before quickly departing to get rid of those accursed bugs (_with eyes, _she reminded herself distantly)_. _Kallie craned her neck, watching the object of her affections go through the glass. Her pace was brisk but not quite rushed, with all of the elegance one would expect from a Coyne. Kallie sighed heavily, bottom lip was wedged between her teeth, and fingers ghosting along the spot Fiona's lips had been not a minute before.


	18. Chapter 18

**Timeline: About half an hour later.**

**A/N: What can I say? Warping the world of Degrassi is my speciality. This chapter is the longest one yet, I believe, so I hope you guys enjoy.**

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><p>Kallie slipped into the gym, quickly finding herself a seat on the bleachers as she watched two sophomores finish putting up the volleyball net. Across the room she could see Anya and Holly J chatting idly, presumably about the tournament. A short distance off from them, Katie was talking to a group of girls, who likely made up the team. She, like the others, was wearing a yellow t-shirt and blue shorts over their bikinis. Kallie smirked, wondering whose idea it was exactly to have an all-girls beach volleyball tournament with bikinis as uniforms. <em>Probably a mildly nerdy guy. Average height, shy. Possibly with glasses. <em>The image formed rapidly in her head. _The kind of guy that's nice, and not exactly horrible-looking, but lacking confidence. _

The brunette observed as over the next few minutes, more participants and spectators flooded into the large gymnasium. No surprise that there were far more people watching than playing, and that most of the spectators were male. Not that she could blame them, after all, the reason she came to this in the first place wasn't exactly to show her school spirit, she thought with a blush. She raised her head, just now noticing Anya had walked across the gym and was now sitting beside her.

"You know, Degrassi used to hold car washes, but the school board stopped them because they were 'too sexual'. So now we have beach volleyball. No soap or water, but there is a lot of jumping around." Anya bumped shoulders with her. Over the past couple of weeks, Kallie had noticed Anya watching her. Not like the manner in which Adam watched Katie, or Clare watched Eli, or even how Holly J watched Fiona, it was an analyzing gaze. One that, throughout that time, dissected Kallie's words and actions. It amused her to no end, to observe Anya observe her. Sometimes she even felt like laughing and telling the senior she could just come right out and ask the question, but most of the time she just let Anya continue in her subtle investigations, and eventually come to her own conclusion that'd likely be right.

And come to the conclusion, she had. Kallie noticed it immediately in the way the girl spoke and acted while in the presence of both Fiona and Kallie, as if she were walking on thin ice. It changed a bit when Fiona wasn't around though, to a kind of knowing and wondering. She had to give it to Anya, the girl was an A+ investigator, but Kallie was just a bit better because she knew exactly what Anya knew about her, and knew what Anya believed about her. But, she had waited long enough for Anya to tell her outright what she knew and what she had believed. Anya had come close a few times, but it was mostly just in soft, prodding, suggestion, instead of the straightforward facts.

"I am." She watched from the corner of her eye as Anya broke into a grin and bit back an excited squeal. Instead, she took a few moments to compose herself, and then continued in a faux-baffled tone.

"What are you talking about? You are… what?"

"Anya, for god's sakes, I'm not in the closet you know. I just don't advertise that I like girls." This time Anya did squeal, and she threw her arms around Kallie.

"I knew it! I have another gay best friend!"

"Well obviously. Like I said, I'm not hiding it. If I was, you would have had no clue, trust me." Suddenly the second part of Anya's excited statement clicked in her head, and she quietly ventured out with the question. "Another…? Holly J's…?"

"Oh god no! Straight as a… straight line."

"I thought the expression was 'straight as a ruler'."

"Rubber rulers, though."

"…that is true, you know."

"Anyways, I actually meant Riley and Zane and…" Anya seemed to hesitate, "them." The way her hands moved just slightly as she explained let Kallie know that either 'them' didn't want her to know, or she didn't know if they did. Kallie briefly thought about inquiring further, but thought better at it, instead choosing to swat Anya on the arm.

"Well I've distracted you for long enough, you should go help not-gay Holly J."

"It rhymed so it must be true!" The voice from behind badly startled them both, causing them to jump- what was with Degrassians and sneaking up on people anyways?-. Kallie whirled around, though she already knew who it was. Sure enough, there sat Imogen, a cheshire smile on her face. "Hello Kallie Barrera and Anya MacPherson, friends of Holly Sin- Jeanette Sinclair," She remedied, "Fiona Coyne, Adam Torres, Eli Goldsworthy, Clare Edwards, Zane Park, Chantay Black, Katie Matlin and Riley Stavros."

"I'm just gonna… go?" Anya mumbled, quickly getting up and making her way over to where Holly J was while Kallie stared Imogen down.

"It is both scary and amazing how much you know. I hardly even talk to Clare during school hours. Aside from English, we don't have classes anywhere near each other."

"But you do talk on the phone. Mostly about Eli Goldsworthy. Sometimes you have three-way calls with her and Alli Bhandari. Once, Alli was paranoid you would try to steal their boyfriends, but Clare told her you don't play for that team. It was quite awkward for Clare."

"Did you tap my phone line or something?"

"Perhaps."

"That's kinda awesome." Imogen blinked, though she managed to keep her shock from being too evident.

"Pardon?"

"I said, that's awesome. It's creepy as fuck, and I have no clue why you did it, but it's awesome. You should work for the CIA or FBI or something like that once you graduate."

"Thank… you?" Kallie chuckled under her breath as she turned to face forwards again, amused at how utterly baffled the actress was. After their original 'official' meeting, Kallie had been keeping a close eye out for her, and surprisingly, if you were looking for Imogen, she was quite easy to find. But what she had found along with the girl was what caused her to be more tolerant and friendly towards her. That certain thing was: nothing. From what she'd seen, Imogen wandered, head down, from class to class in a silent manor, never interacting with anyone outside of drama class. In fact, the closest she had to actually friends _were_ Eli and his circle, due only to the fact she shared a lunch period with them and sat once table over, and her locker was two down from his.

It certainly was a lonely existence to live, not that it completely excused Imogen of her stalker-ish tendencies. Besides, what she was doing wasn't altogether bad, just eavesdropping here and there and inferring information- Kallie was certain their previous conversation was a display of Imogen trying to joke around. At least as far as the phone-tapping part of it went, due to Kallie not having three-way calling, and the fact that the conversation Imogen had referred to had happened at the Dot. Now that Kallie thought about it, she was actually pretty sure Imogen had been their server, but with her hair down and straightened, with normal clothes and sans hot-librarian glasses.

Suddenly, a muted ringing filled the gym. Kallie immediately looked around, trying to see where it was coming from. When the third ring occurred, Imogen finally tapped on her shoulder and motioned to Kallie's bag sitting near her feet. _Oh_, her face reddened instantly. It had been her phone. Quickly, she grabbed it out of her bag and answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey Kallie." It was Fiona's voice. "So, I guess the entire loft has to be cleaned, and all of our clothes have to be steamed. Do you have any idea how many pieces of clothing I have?"

"A lot, considering the school you attend has a dress code?"

"That was just added after Vegas Night. You know, the one Eli wrote about?"

"I don't think it's considered writing if you slightly adjust names and stretch facts. I mean, Clara? Come on."

"Honestly, it's better than his last idea. So, you at the volleyball thing already?"

"Yeah, it's just about to start. How come?"

"I was just wondering if Holly J's stressing herself out."

"Nope, just chatting with Anya. But really, what are you calling about? There's gotta be some important reason, considering we've talked over phone a grand total of one and a half times before."

"Half?"

"Once when I was talking to Holly J I heard you in the background complaining about lack of caviar."

"Oh. Well actually, I was just calling to see… the pest control guy said that I should probably check with everyone who's been into the condo lately to see if they've been anywhere they could've picked up bedbugs."

"So… basically you're accusing me of bringing them into your home? Gee, thanks Fi." Her comment was meant to come out joking, but Kallie found her throat tightening, and her tone turned sour.

"No! Well, I don't know! I've only known you for a little while, and I don't know where you hang around or what your house is like and your parents could be the duke and duchess of Narnia for all I know. I was just supposed to check with everyone, just in case, since they can be picked up pretty much everywhere."

"But you called me _first_, Fiona." Kallie didn't know why she was so angry at the girl all of a sudden, after all, she understood that it was better safe than sorry, and it wasn't like it mattered anyway, Fiona clearly wouldn't be mad even if it had been her. But it _hadn't_, and did Fiona trust her so little that she thought Kallie wouldn't have told her that she had- or might've- brought them into her home when she originally brought up the bugs, earlier that day?

"Well what am I supposed to do?" Her voice was just a little higher and shriller at that point. As if she was desperate to prove it wasn't personal- which once again, deep down inside, Kallie knew. But then, her voice shifted, and Kallie could tell she was frustrated and angry and disgusted and just a little scared. "But you know, what can I expect from someone so screwed up they have crazy chronic nightmares? Obviously your home life must be pretty fucking screwed up too, and I wouldn't be surprised if it _was_ infested with bedbugs!"

Kallie heard soft, strangled noise, and she realized that she had made that utterly broken sound. She barely registered the rushed apologies on the other side of the phone as she held it a couple of inches away from her ear. Another distant part of her noticed that across the gym, Owen had sprayed Holly J with a bottle of gatorade, and she was kind of thankful for that, if only because it gave her a reason, however weak it was, to hang up.

"I've got to go, Owen's being a douche." _No Kal please stay on the line. Kal, I'm so, so, sorry I didn't mean-_ click. She stood and turned, shoving the phone into Imogen's hands. Her eyes were concerned, but her mouth was set in a line that meant she had realized it wasn't her place to comfort her, and that nothing could, anyways. "Hold this, please." The voice sounded foreign, it was thick, and low- much lower than Kallie's already low voice, in fact for a moment she even thought it must've been Eli who had spoken, except she knew he was at Adam's house, playing Call of Duty or perhaps Gears of War.

Numbly, she turned back, walking towards Holly J. As she passed by Katie, she noted the girl was carrying a towel and deftly snatched it from her, ignoring her shout of protest. "Hey, Holly J." The redhead turned to face her, just narrowly catching the towel as it flew towards her face.

"Thanks, but it's just water, it'll dry."

"Actually, it's gatorade, and it's going to be sticky as hell when it dries. I have an extra gym shirt in my locker, I can go get it for you."

"Really, it's okay."

"Really, I insist." Kallie protested, her voice all but apathetic. Holly J noticed this, her brow furrowing. Anya wasn't standing all that far off, and even she seemed to notice the girl's sudden robot-like demeanour.

"Hey… is everything alright, Kal?" _Thank you _so_ much, Kal… No Kal please stay on the line… Kal, I'm so, so, sorry I didn't mean…_

"I'm fine." Her voice cracked, and the distant piece of her that had been piloting her actions up till now was shoved cruelly to the side, allowing the numbness to flee and feeling to seep in. She quickly ducked her head. "I'll go get you that shirt, now." Before Holly J could protest, Kallie turned away and made a dash for the exit. She ripped open the heavy metal door, ignoring the scream of her muscles as she roughly jerked it open, and ran into the hall, crashing right into another person running in the opposite direction.

Somehow they fell in such a way that Kallie's knee was pressed into the other person's stomach, and their elbow into her neck with their other arm pinning her to the ground. In short, they had become a human pretzel. Kallie craned her neck, trying to see whom she had collided with, finding herself slightly surprised to see Alli.

"Okay, _ow._"

"Sorry." Kallie quickly untangled herself from Alli and straightened her bright red shirt. "Why were you running?"

"Could ask you the same thing, Kat. I was trying to catch a hooded panty-napper."

"I was running to get Holly J a new shirt." The half-truth came a little too easily, and by Alli's expression, she hadn't bought it.

"The only way _that_ could be urgent is if her old shirt magically disintegrated into thin air. But… I guess if you don't want to tell me, that's up to you. Now, have you seen any suspicious people about yay tall? I think he was taking a photo, so maybe he had a phone or a camera?" She shrugged, shaking her head.

"Sorry Alli, I've got nothing."

"I figured as much. Off to find Mr. Simpson I go, then. Are you aware his name is Snake?"

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><p>Fiona heard the door to the condo swing open not long after Kallie had hung up on her. The five minutes immediately following the event had been filled with a whole lot of nothing aside from staring at her phone and mulling over wether to call her back or not. Eventually she had sighed and resumed packing up her things, though. Kallie had hung up on her, which obviously meant she didn't want to talk to Fiona. She deserved it, after all. How she could be so stupid and insensitive was beyond her, but she had been. Not only that, but she had been downright <em>mean<em>. All Fiona had wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cease to exist. Then, of course, came the text from Charlie. Fiona dimly recalled that brief moment of excitement, of pure joy, where she had been sure it was Kallie. Of course things couldn't have been that easy, though.

"Hey I'm home!" Charlie walked into the living room casually. "Sorry i didn't pick up dinner.., did you get my text?" Though Fiona wasn't looking at her, she could tell that Charlie had been surprised at the state of her-their -home. Bags and boxes were scattered everywhere, and what things weren't packed up were strewn across the couch. But, did she get her text? Fiona's first instinct was to yell at Charlie, and tell her of course she had gotten her _freaking_ text, when it was supposed to be Kallie. Her next was to yell at her and tell her of course she had gotten her _freaking_ text while she was busy cleaning up this entire mess. But the final instinct won out, so she said nothing. Fiona could almost feel her shoulder freeze as the silence stretched on.

"Are we moving?" Once again, the urge to yell and be angry at her, or anyone really, arose, but she pushed it down and instead bitter sarcasm took it's place.

"It crossed my mind."

"What's going on?" Her all-too-innocent confusion would have been endearing to Fiona in another time or place, under another scenario, but right now it was just aggravating.

"We have bedbugs."

"Bedbugs?" She saw Charlie leap up from where she had been about to sit down, her shock obvious.

"With eyes. I'm doing damage control before my mom gets home. I've never felt so filthy in my entire life."

"What can I do to help?" Charlie walked over to where Fiona was tying a plastic bag, reaching out to pick it up for her. But before Charlie could touch it- or her hand, for that matter- Fiona yanked it away, her glare scalding.

"Nothing, pest control's coming back tomorrow."

"This sucks, Fiona." And suddenly, the rage came back. Irrational, blind fury. Of course the acceptable answer would be to nod, attempt a smile, and agree. The cold, but alternative answer was to firmly nod and continue what she was doing without eye contact. But the rage whisked both of those options away, and Fiona verbally lashed out.

"Doesn't it? Thanks to you I have to sleep on the _floor _tonight." She spat, blaming Charlie without remorse. It had to be someone, after all, and like hell if it had been her or Holly J.

"Thanks to ME? You think I brought them in?"

"Who else?" Fiona replied, the thought of Kallie lingering in her mind.

"I don't know, maybe anybody? Did you consider it maybe wasn't me?"

"Well they weren't here before you moved in, and I haven't been anywhere sketchy, so…"

"Oh, so I'm sketchy, is that it?"

"You said you lived above a subway line." Fiona could feel desperation setting in. Once more, she had upset someone dear to her, and for what? Because she couldn't contain her temper? The urge to make someone suffer? But again, an urge came, this time to prove Charlie wrong somehow. It _had_ been her, it _had_ to be. There was no one else, the only people who had been in the home for the past week had been Adam, Katie, Kallie, Holly J, herself, Charlie, and her mother.

"That doesn't mean I had a bedbug infestation!"

"You said you volunteer at a homeless shelter, and keep your clothes in an old duffel bag!"

"You actually think you're better than me because you have money." The pity and contempt in Charlie's voice at this was like a slap in the face.

"Charlie…"

"No, sorry I'm not a porcelain doll like you."

"Okay, that's not what I meant. I'm just so grossed out!" She tried again to apologize, once more failing miserably as she had not even an hour ago. She wasn't sure which one had been worse, the numb and broken way Kallie had made an excuse not to talk to her, or the fiery and disbelieving way Charlie cut back at her.

"Awesome. I'm gonna go have a shower," She whirled around just as she was about to leave the room. "and maybe I'll sleep in the _tub_, since you think I'm so dirty."


	19. Chapter 19

**Timeline: Between Should've Said No part 2 and U Don't Know part 1.**

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><p>The next week was tense, at best. Kallie divided her time between composing and drafting musicians for the play, helping Katie with the school paper, and hanging out with Eli and Adam whenever none of them were doing anything else. Despite only having become close friends with Fiona recently, the sudden snag in their relationship had been noticed by most of Degrassi's students, most of which Kallie didn't even recognize, let alone know their names. The girls' fight had affected other areas of Kallie's life, as well. For one, a rift had appeared in her friendship with Anya and Holly J as well which wasn't altogether surprising, given she was completely avoiding the third girl that made up their trio. Secondly, she noticed that her other friends had taken to looking at her strangely, as if they expected her to either go on a killing rampage or burst into tears at any time. It was bizarre, really, considering they didn't even know the details of what had occurred.<p>

The only one that didn't act any differently was Katie, who hadn't said anything about the abrupt severing of their social circle. It was probably better that way. Katie kept her busy with schoolwork, had gotten her an 'internship' for Degrassi's paper, and had even convinced her to try out for the soccer team. Why she had even suggested the latter, due to Kallie's obvious less than pristine physical capabilities was beyond her, but nonetheless she had eventually caved under the editor's stalwart argument.

The only other drama had come when Adam had a close call earlier in the week, when his brother Drew had nearly convinced their mother to transfer them to another school, due to some gang conflict. However, at the last moment, Drew had changed his mind, and everything more or less returned to normal for the Torres'.

A now-familiar ringing put a stop to Kallie's reflection, and she lazily turned onto her side, risking a glance at her bedside table to make sure of what she had already suspected. Sure enough, it was Fiona calling. _Again._ Over the previous two days Fiona had called 139 times, texted 45 times, and left 23 messages. Several times, Kallie had considered just turning her phone off- or better, throwing it out the window- but there was always the chance Adam texted to see if she wanted to hang out, or Clare called for advice, or Katie needed her for something, or some sort of emergency occurred. Of course, none of those things had happened in that span of time, and Kallie was starting to get really pissed off. Couldn't Fiona take the hint she had all but shoved into her face?

Then came the bang outside of her window. At first, she ignored it, figuring it was nothing. The second time, she thought just maybe a bird had flown into it- though this thought was quickly followed by remorse for the poor little non-existent bird-. The third, she finally stood up and walked over to the window that completely made up the fourth wall of her room. She glanced down, a scowl immediately surfacing as she saw Fiona. She briefly wondered how she had gotten her address, and several answers flocked to her mind; Holly J had used her position to find her address; Adam or Eli had caved and told her; she had paid off Imogen for the information. The final thought almost lifted her frown, but not quite.

Instead, she stared at Fiona, her glare intensified by all the emotions the girl had inflicted upon her. Fiona's face instantly warped from nervous and remorseful to completely horrified and self-loathing as she without a doubt read the emotions painted on the other girl's face. Kallie turned three-quarters of the way around, about to walk back to her bed and continue in her less than blissful loneliness when Fiona's muffled voice through the glass stopped her.

"Kallie, I'm sorry!" She looked back at Fiona, and she would've harshly snapped back if not for what she saw.

Fiona was still below the window, around the side of her house where there was nothing but dirt- mud now, since it had rained the previous day- and a few rocks or patches of grass. She was kneeling there, in a begging motion, which would have been relatively endearing on it's own, but that wasn't what had caught Kallie's attention. What had caught her spellbound was the dress Fiona was wearing. White, with lace, it ended just above Fiona's knees and now, it was caked with mud. She stared at Fiona for several more long moments, utterly aghast. That dress was a one-of-a-kind, Fiona had mentioned it once before, briefly. And now, it was ruined.

Kallie felt herself nodding and then, as she caught Fiona's attention, she motioned for the girl to go around front. Not waiting to see her reaction, Kallie quickly paced over to her wardrobe (Adam had laughed at it once before "Have you met Aslan?") and quickly pulled out the only skirt she owned- it was pleated, but Fiona would live- along with a top she had borrowed from Katie that was a little more Fiona's style than anything she owned. Making her way downstairs, she stopped briefly at the kitchen to fill a kettle of water and pop it onto the stove before making her way to the front door. She swung it open just as Fiona was walking up the porch steps, unceremoniously throwing the articles of clothing her way.

"Bathroom's just down that way," she motioned behind herself, "through the kitchen and down the hall. Last door on the left. Don't track any mud in the house, and if you want you can take a quick shower. I'm making tea." As Fiona went to reply, Kallie cut her off. "I'm really not in the mood right now, Fi. The only reason I've invited you in is because it's cold and wet out there and you just trashed a dress probably worth a couple grand."

Kallie turned 180 degrees, briskly striding into the kitchen, Fiona following a few paces behind after she had removed her shoes. Briefly, she wondered if she had been perhaps a little too harsh to the girl, and discovered that yes indeed, she had, but she honestly didn't care at that point. The brunette grabbed a pair of mugs from the cupboard, as she set them down she heard the bathroom door click closed, and water start flowing not a minute later. Kallie wasn't surprised Fiona had decided to take a shower, she was a very clean person after all, and it gave her more time to organize her thoughts, as she no doubt needed to.

The kettle let out a low whistle what seemed only seconds later, though in reality she had been staring at the stove for a few minutes. Kallie took it off the stove, pouring the water into the mugs, teabags already resting at the bottom. She watched as the leaves slowly changed the colour of the steaming water, blossoming like a flower in the spring. If only life were as simple as making a cup of tea. Kallie raised her head as she heard the shower shut off, and quickly fished out the tea bags, spooning in a little sugar into each of the cups nervously.

She took a shaky breath, steeling herself for what was about to occur; she hoped Fiona wouldn't ask too many questions. She picked up the mugs, walking over to the small table in the corner of the table. She set Fiona's mug across from her, hesitantly pausing as she wondered if she should put the mug beside her instead, but decided it didn't matter. Kallie took a long sip of tea, her gaze shifting upwards as she sensed more than heard Fiona walk into the kitchen. She was wearing the clothes Kallie had given to her, of course, and her hair was even darker than usual due to the water. Her curls were also still dripping a bit, and just minutes before Kallie would have lectured her for the few drops of water on the floor, but now nearly all thought fled her mind.

"Is uh…, is Earl Grey alright? I could make Pekoe. And I gave you two sugars. I don't really know how you like your tea. Do you even like tea?" Fiona's hand slipped towards Kallie's, her fingers brushing the back of her hand as if she were about to grip it, but then thought better of it as they deftly retreated.

"It's fine, Kal." She smiled at Kallie, who ducked her head and nodded, as if suddenly fearful of what Fiona would see in her eyes. "I…I'm so unbelievably sorry, Kal."

"Please stop calling me that." The request had meant to come out assertive- as a command- but it was soft, and polite, and pleading. From her peripheral vision she could see Fiona's brow furrow.

"Stop calling you what?"

"Kal. Just… call me Kallie. _Please._"

"I- why?" Dammit. Kallie shook her head, fighting the sudden resurgence of emotion she felt the only way she knew how at that moment- harsh words and sarcasm.

"Because haven't you heard? I'm screwed up! So obviously just having someone call me Kal again would make me go _crazy_." Fiona blinked, taken aback not only by her sudden shift in demeanour, but at the familiarity of her words.

"No you're not Kal…lie. I was wrong, completely wrong. If anyone's screwed up here it's me. Plus, even if we were both screwed up and crazy, at least you're not a bitch like me."

"You're not. That's why it hurt, Fiona."

"Please, just tell me what I can do to make this better. Anything. Even if it's illegal, or involves wrecking more of my clothes. Just say the word."

"There's nothing Fiona, because I'm not even mad at you right now. Disappointed, sure. It feels like I got punched in the gut. And I'm not sure I'll ever be able to act the same around you, considering you took my trust and stomped on it. But I'm not mad. Not at you."

"Then why…" Kallie shook her head, locking eyes with Fiona for the first time since she had entered the room.

"Not now. Maybe one day, but I'm not ready to say it out loud yet. Especially not to you. No offence, but you did call me and my family screwed up because of something I can't exactly help."

"I understand."

"Good. Now are you staying over or what? It's getting late and I'm pretty sure you don't drive."

"Scooters, but no, I didn't drive here. So sure, if you'll have me."

"Suit yourself, so long as you don't mind flannel PJs."

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><p><strong>AN: I kind of wish Jake and Kallie were friends now, just so they could muse about flannel and how it's the choice fabric of lumberjacks and lesbians everywhere. Sigh. Maybe I'll write a deleted scene where this occurs one of these days.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Just a quick little chapter today since, if I'm being completely honest, I updated my other fic (The Traitor Heart) today and totally forgot about this one. Whoops?**

**Additionally, you guys should crucify me. No, really. Twenty chapters in and Kallie and Fiona aren't even out to each other yet. :P**

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><p>Kallie pushed open the door to her room shortly after, taking a step in and remarking dryly to Fiona, "Welcome to casa de Kallie. Sorry about the absence of bed bugs, I'll try to wrangle some up next time."<p>

The witty remark that had been on the tip of Fiona's tongue died as she entered the room, blinking widely. Not much phased the girl, let alone shocked her, after all of her years of travel, but Kallie's room had certainly done the trick. It wasn't very wide, but it was long, taking up almost the entire length of the house; if you counted the adjoined bathroom, it _was_ the entire length. Most of the room nearest the door was barren, save for a nightstand and the girl's bed (queen sized, it was dwarfed by Fiona's ultra-king sized, but it was befitting of the other girl). However, the other side of the room was a completely different story. Running all the way from the far wall to about four feet to the bed, on either side, were bookcases, all completely filled. Between them there were a couple of chairs and a light in what was obviously a reading area, and then, further down, facing the bay window that took up the entire wall.

"Jesus. It's bigger than my room in New York."

"Do I get a trophy?" Kallie quipped, sitting down on her bed and leaning back on her hands.

Fiona walked around the space, running her fingers along the bookshelves as she went. There had to be a couple hundred books there, maybe even thousands. Finally she stopped at Kallie's desk, marvelling at the massive chunk of solid mahogany. It obviously wasn't just for decoration, either. On one corner of the desk, a laptop sat, and the rest of the desk was occupied by paper, pens, and- surprise!- more books.

"This isn't a room, it's a god damn library, Kallie."

"Evidently so, but I'm going to have to start charging late fees. Adam took half of my Anne Rice's and he hasn't brought them back yet."

Fiona glanced up from the desk, inquisitive. "How long ago did he borrow them?"

"A week, three days?"

"Well no wonder he hasn't, most of her books put textbooks to shame." Kallie shrugged.

"I suppose you have a point. I just hope he's treating The Feast of All Saints okay. It's the original binding, and I only have the one." Noting the look Fiona gave her, she shrugged once more. "What? You have fashion, I have the written word."

The dark-haired girl chuckled then looked back at the desk, gently leafing through a loose stack of paper, filled margin to margin with elegant black script. Her eyes scanned the pages, absorbing a few words before her gaze shot up to connect with Kallie's, a blush covering her cheeks.

"Well, I wish I could unread that."

"Before you say anything more, you should know Eli and Adam requested that, and wouldn't stop bothering me about it."

"Still though. Erotic vampire fiction centred around two young men named Ali and Alan?" Fiona laughed, finding the whole thing more amusing than she really should have. "You Misfits are weird folk, I'll tell you that."

Kallie couldn't help but crack a smile at the nickname given to their odd clique, her utter mortification lightening some. "Hey, just remember, you're part of the Misfits now too. It won't be long before you start writing vampire fanfiction and biting peoples necks during Seven Minutes in Heaven."

"Not if I can- wait, what?"

"Just ask Clare about Madame Degrassi, that's all I'm going to say about that."

"Duly noted." Fiona hesitated a moment before going through with her inquiry. "So uh, why did Adam and Eli want you to write that, anyways?"

The brunette threw her hands up in a hopeless gesture, rolling her eyes. "Who knows? I wasn't about to ask if the events in the requested 'story' were as close to real life as the ones in Eli's play are."

"Good call. Now… you weren't serious about the flannel, right?"

Kallie rolled her eyes as she moved towards her wardrobe for the second time that evening, taking two pairs of flannel pyjamas out and chucking one at Fiona's head, much like she had done with the skirt and shirt just over an hour ago. "I don't joke about flannel, Fiona."

The girl's expression was dismayed, so say the least, as she held the sleepclothes in a bundle against her chest. A pout graced her features as she only half-jokingly complained. "First a ruined dress, now this? Today's just one fashion nightmare after another."

Kallie chuckled, making her way over to the bathroom. Just before she shut the door, she stuck her head out, tongue poking out playfully between her teeth. "If you're that desperate, you could sleep in the buff. I don't really care."


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: *sniffle* I love you Tumblr anon. Sucking up to the author never fails to get more updates. ^_^**

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><p>When Kallie emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, she chuckled at the sight of Fiona sitting cross-legged on the bed, clothed in a white sleeveless top and shorts. Another person may have been angered or annoyed if someone went through their closet without their permission and borrowed clothes, but Kallie found it quite amusing. Even moreso since she would've thought Fiona would dislike what she was currently wearing even more than the flannel pjs that no doubt sat folded in the wardrobe now.<p>

Fiona had her nose buried in a book of 19th century poetry, and looked up when she heard the girl's soft laughter. Her perplexed expression made the visual even more amusing to Kallie, who eventually contained herself. Next she spoke, gesturing behind herself at the hall door as she did so.

"You can use the bathroom now to get ready for bed. I'm just gonna see if I can't help salvage that dress of yours." At the mention of the dress Fiona's face fell a bit, making Kallie chuckle again. At least she now knew she was more important to Fiona than an outfit, though.

She slipped out of the room, pausing at the top of the stairs that lay just past her door. Gracefully, she sat on the polished wooden banister, sliding down it as she had been nearly every day since they moved to Toronto. Her previous dwellings had nearly all been large apartments, the only deviations from this pattern had been in Saskatoon and St. Johns, where she had lived in smallish bungalows. Toronto had been the first city where her house had been this large, and it was also the first place she had really called home since she was six.

Kallie found the muddied dress, loosely folded on the counter in the main floor bathroom. It looked to be in better shape than she had originally thought, only the bottom few inches actually had the mud on it, and it was still slightly damp. Quickly she found the tag, stitched inside the dress near the ribs. She skimmed through the washing instructions, groaning internally when she realized it was dry-clean only. _That figures. Oh well, either way the bottom of it's pretty much trash. _She scooped up the dress, laying the dirtied area in the sink, letting the water flow over it and wash away whatever mud possible. Five minutes later, only a trace amount of mud remained, which would later be all-but-completely removed.

She folded the dress over one arm, pushing open the bathroom door with the other and made her way back upstairs to Fiona, stopping only briefly to lay the dress out to dry on the dining room table that was rarely, if ever, used. The girl was already done preparing for bed by the time she arrived upstairs, the book of poetry once more opened in her lap; she was completely engrossed in it, not noticing Kallie's arrival. The brunette took that moment before Fi noticed her to observe her. Dark hair loosely cascaded around her porcelain face, her pale pink lips slightly parted as she murmured the words she read aloud. Kallie noticed now, with a smile, that Fiona had a gentle bridge of freckles across her nose. If it were possible, Fiona had to have been more beautiful without makeup than she was with it.

The girl in question looked up then, her, as always, intense eyes startling Kallie out of her near-trance. Rapidly she recovered, walking over to the other side of the bed and slipping into it and rolling over on her side to face Fiona, much like she had during their last impromptu sleepover.

"See anything interesting?" Fiona stared at her, mouth agape.

"W-what?" Kallie gave Fiona a curious smile and gestured to the book still lying in her lap, watching as Fiona followed her motion and shakily composed an answer. "Oh, that. Yeah. Lots of hum, old European stuff. Nice and… rhymey?" Try as she might, Kallie couldn't help but grin at Fiona's nervous response. As eloquent as she may be around most people, Kallie was quite partial to this side of Fiona she was sure very few really saw.

"Rhymey, huh? Well isn't that lovely, considering you're reading haikus."

"Oh… yeah. Right." She closed the book softly, setting it down on the side table. "Just so you know… I don't usually act this idiotic."

"I'd hope not; I'm kidding, of course. It's actually kind of cute."

"Cute?" Fiona questioned.

"Sure, in a puppy eating your shoe sort of way."

"Thanks… I think."

"Mhm." Kallie murmured, shutting her eyes briefly and lapsing into silence for nearly a minute before speaking again. "Fi, truth or dare?" She opened her eyes, silently observing as Fiona stared at the ceiling, mapping out the possible results for each option.

"Truth."

"What do you _really _think about me?"

"I thought you were supposed to start out with easy questions."

"Oh, come on, Fi. It's not exactly me asking you your opinion on string theory." She rolled her eyes.

"Fine, fine. Well… I don't really know where to begin. You're strange and distant sometimes, and sometimes you scare me. It's like you can… look _through _people and see _everything_. No, not everything.., but you see what people are feeling, you can see all these little things in each and every person and know stuff about them that maybe even they haven't known or accepted yet. It both terrifies me and breaks my heart because I know the only way a person can really see those things is if they've been through them themselves. I think that it's the same reason I feel like I've known you my entire life, too, because I swear you know everything about me and are still learning more every day. You might even know me better than _me_. But what do I know about you? I know your name, that your favourite colour is sea foam green and your favourite print is plaid, I know you're one of those rare people that loves both sides of the extreme in everything; movies, music, books, colours, people. And I know that your birthday is in almost exactly six days. I know you're a cat person. But I don't know that much else. And I suspect some things; for one, I suspect your parents must work constantly because you never talk about them, you never called anyone to let them know you'd be staying over that one time, and they're not here now. I suspect that something horrible has happened to you. I suspect that although you've never lied to me, you're not telling the truth about a lot of things, and I suspect I know the least about you out of our entire social circle. So it comes down to this: What do I think about you? Frankly Kallie, I think you have got to be the most strange, mysterious, fascinating thing I've ever encountered in my life. And you should know that's not a title you should take lightly." Fiona tilted her head towards Kallie as she finished her monologue, her gaze weary yet still as intense as it had been when she had first entered the room again. "Truth or Dare?"

Now it was Kallie's turn to try and find her voice, to stumble over her words so anxiously. "D-Dare."

"I dare you to start trying again. Whatever it was that made you stop, ignore it's memory and _try_."


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: So, fic-reader folk, I have some bad news, some more bad news (for you) and some news that could be seen as bad or good. First off, in a few days I'll be going on hiatus again because I'm going on a mini-vacation with two of my best friends. Second, I was hit by writers block, which is why this chapter came late and may come off a bit… forced. And third, from this point on this fic is going fully AU not only so I can stretch out the year as long as I'd like, but because I hate Krew and Holly J's going to be getting her kidney from somewhere else. And now I conclude this ridiculously long but vital Author's Note by saying: thank you to all my readers and reviewers and I want to hug all of you, I really do.**

When Fiona awoke, she was partially surprised at the feeling of being encircled in warmth. Cracking open her eyes, she found that her suspicions had been correct; both girls had moved during the night and were now entangled with each other near the middle of the bed. She attempted to shift her position, but realized not only was one of her arms completely pinned under Kallie, but the girl's arms firmly encircled her waist. It made Fiona slightly uncomfortable, only due to the fact it was _too_ comfortable, especially with Kallie's head bent into the crook between Fiona's neck and shoulder. The position they were in was distracting, to say the least. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but take a moment to stare down the length of their hopelessly entertained bodies. Their legs were twisted together just as much as their torsos were, to the point where Fiona really couldn't tell where hers ended and where Kallie's began. And of course, the best thing had to have been Kallie's breathing, deep, rhythmic, and steady, lightly blowing across Fiona's collarbone. Needless to say, as uncomfortable as it may have been for Fiona at that moment, she wouldn't say no at the opportunity to experience it again.

But of course, all good things must come to and end. Fiona gently snaked her left arm from around Kallie's shoulder and leaned back in her grasp. She then traced her fingertips against Kallie's cheek, brushing a few stray hairs away as she did so.

She spoke lowly, a bit surprised at how husky her voice was that morning. "Wakey, wakey, Princess Aurora." Kallie groaned, attempting to pull Fiona closer in her grasp once more. The dark-haired girl chuckled breathily, nudging the other girl with her elbow. "Seriously, wake up."

"Five more minutes."

"No way, you're getting up right now, you. Don't make me make you regret this."

Despite her warning, Kallie made no sign she was going to get out of bed anytime soon. Fiona sighed dramatically before looping her left arm back around Kallie, linking her left hand with her right so she was completely encircling the girl. With that done, she twisted, rolling onto her other die and bringing Kallie with her, rolling them both off of the bed and onto the floor. Instantly, Kallie shot up, a hand flying to her head and curses flying out her mouth in rapid succession.

"Hey, _ow._ What the heck, Fi?"

"Don't complain to me, complain to your alarm clock." Fiona gestured to the clock, sitting there on Kallie's night stand. It's red numbers seemed smug, if that was possible, telling them both it was quarter past eight.

"Holy shit we're late!"

"Excellent observation. I have dibs on using the bathroom first, so for your sake I hope you don't take very long to get ready."

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><p>An hour and a half, two buses, and nine complaints from Fiona about the two buses later, the girls had finally arrived at Degrassi's front steps. They had both headed to the main office to grab their respective late slips, Kallie's leaving the hand of the secretary much quicker than Fiona's. While she seemed to forgive the recently enrolled student quite easily, it took Kallie explaining to her the entire situation, including her reluctance to roll out of bed that morning, before she grudgingly nodded and handed the slip of paper over.<p>

After that, they said their hurried goodbyes and parted, each heading to their respective second block classes, due to their first block classes ending in just a few minutes. For the most part, the day slipped by effortlessly for Kallie; Eli was more or less his normal self, and though Imogen hung around, since that day in the gym she seemed to be trying to tone down her… 'unique' qualities. Soon enough she found her lunch period was approaching, which meant- she cringed thinking about it- she was to help out with the fashion show, thanks to Katie and her inability to take no for an answer. Thankfully that also meant she got to spend more time with Fiona, Holly J and of course, Katie herself, so it wasn't all bad.

Kallie stepped into the room in which they would be practicing- she thought this with an internal snort. After all, they _were_ practicing walking- instantly being greeted by Katie bombarding her with questions.

"Dress size? Preferred length, fabric, colour?"

"Woah there, I thought I was in charge of this show. Unless this is some strange alternate universe where your name is Holly Jeanette Sinclair?" Holly J stepped up to them, her half-smile showing she wasn't completely serious.

"Of course you are, I just thought I'd help out a little bit."

"Well, to answer those questions; I have no clue I haven't worn a dress since I was seven; if I have to wear a dress then floor-length; whatever; some dark colour."

"You seriously don't know your dress size, and you're one of Fiona's best friends." Holly J's brows raised, "The world must be ending."

"Tease all you want, I'm just really not a dress or skirt person. I'm only here because Katie doesn't understand what the words 'No thanks, Katie. I'm really not into that sort of thing' mean."

"Well, there might be a way you can still help without having to wear a dress…" Katie suggested, Holly J curiously motioning for her to continue with pitching the idea. "We _do _have a shortage of boys. You could wear their tuxedo t-shirt and stand in during the show."

"I'll do it." Holly J held up a hand, signalling a pause.

"Now wait a minute, I have to okay the idea first." Kallie's face fell somewhat and she looked at Holly J expectantly. "Okay, okay, fine. But you'll have to enter from the guy's side during the show, which is connected to their change room, so try and keep your eyes up."

A peal of laughter drew their attention towards the door of the room, Anya sauntering in merrily. The expression on her face left no questions about what she would say next, and sure enough, the dry statement was more or less exactly what Kallie had expected. "Believe me, Holly J, Kallie will have _no_ problem with that, if you catch my drift."

Kallie rolled her eyes, the surprised look on the redhead's face and the bemused one on Katie's also happened quite predictably. No doubt Katie had already been informed of Kallie's orientation by Adam, probably quite some time ago. But for Holly J it came as quite a shock, though by the looks of it this was something that wasn't exactly new to her.

"Oh. So you're… okay. Well this is gonna reinforce some stereotypes." She turned her head to Anya then, lowering her voice slightly. "Does she know about…?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Awesome talking about me like I'm not here. But I'm glad to know I was right about someone playing for my team that I don't know about… Is it Eli?"

"Uh, no." Anya snorted a laugh, then turning serious and contemplating this, "I don't think so, anyways. Who really knows, what with the eyeliner."

"And vampire fanfiction." Holly J added, much to Kallie's chagrin.

"Oh god, Fiona told you about that?"

"Believe me, there's not much she _doesn't _tell me." she rolled her eyes then ushered them over to the stage. "Anyways, get in your places. As soon as Fiona arrives fashionably late, as always, we'll discuss struts." Holly J turned, Katie a few paces behind her like an overachieving shadow.

"Wow," Anya sarcastically quipped. "Fancy walks. I'm so jealous of you, I might just sign up."

"I know what you mean. Thankfully I'm an honorary dude for the duration of the fashion show, I'm not sure I would have been able to stand in those heels the models are wearing. Which doesn't really make sense for them to be wearing at this stage of the game either, much less with socks on." Anya clapped her on the back with a grin.

"Well nonetheless, godspeed. You're a braver woman than I."

Kallie scoffed good-naturedly at Anya before making her way over to the right of the stage and taking a seat on the edge of it. The purpose of her even staying now that it was decided she was to be a guy-stand in was lost on her. After all, all she'd have to do was put on a shirt and pants, loop arms with one of these random girls, walk a straight line with them, and then walk back. But still, it was better than eating alone at a table; or worse, eating at a table alone, save for Anya, who would no doubt drill her about her dream girl the second she got her alone.

Finally after several more minutes passed, Fiona arrived, earning a short half-hearted lecture from Holly J. The models were then ushered to the stage, where Fiona addressed them on behalf of the fashion department.

"Tomorrow we'll meet again here, same time, in order for you all to pick up your dresses. We'll also have a brief dress rehearsal, sans guys; congratulations Kallie, you get out of that one. So, if we don't have your sizes, either get measured or get us the info asap."

Holly J took the reins from there, immediately motioning for the girls to form a line, which they more or less did… if a line were a clump. Katie was first in line, which was of course typical of the girl. She nervously walked down the runway, greatly resembling a penguin with a wedgie. Fiona glared at Kallie as she stifled a giggle, though from the looks of it she was having trouble keeping her composure as well.

"Attitude!" Holly J commanded, "Imagine there's a guy-" A fleeting glance to Kallie that was almost apologetic, as if she was afraid she had offended the girl due to the generalization, which caused her to actually break into a fit of laughter, "-down front who just dumped you. Make him regret it."

Katie gave the redhead a questioning and uncomfortable glance before walking back to her place.

"Not bad, but we could do better; aim higher." She motioned to the next in line. "Chantay?"

"I got this." She declared, obviously a little too confident as she strutted- though it was more like stomping- down the runway. Kallie covered her mouth with her hand, trying to force down her laughter. Sure it _was _worthy of laughing at, but she felt bad for finding it so funny at the same time. After all, they were doing their best.

As an opinionated a person as Fiona was however, she spoke her mind. "Okay, terrifying."

"Let's pull the music." Holly J suggested. "Okay, I'm no model, but here's what I'm looking for." She got up on the catwalk and demonstrated. A leisurely yet brisk pace, that wasn't as exaggerated as Chantay's nor as timid as Katie's. "Confident, not angry. See? Own it." As she reached the end of the stage, she turned, collapsing instantly. "Ow! Oh, my leg! Ow ow ow."

If Kallie was to her feet in a flash, Fiona was at Holly J's side quicker than lightning, reaching her even before the girls closest to Holly J's position were. Katie and Kallie were the next to her side, with Chantay right behind them. Holly J was sprawled on her back, her fingers reaching feebly towards her leg, obviously the source of her pain.

"What happened?"

"Muscle cramp; dialysis. Ow ow." The three brunettes exchanged worry glances, each knowing that the cramp was no small thing, though Fiona, as the girl closest to Holly J, was the only of the trio who really knew the extent of it.

"Okay, okay. Let's get her up." Kallie nodded, slipping one arm under Holly J's back and the other gently fastening to her arm, helping to pull her into a sitting position along with the others.

As soon as Holly J exclaimed in agony, they quickly let her back down. "Ow ow ow, I can't."

Kallie looked between Fiona and Holly J; the redhead was now panting due to the pain, but what had piqued Kallie's curiosity was Fiona. Though it was no time to observe such things, she couldn't help but notice Fiona's hand, a little higher up on Holly J's thigh than could be deemed appropriate or friendly, drawing light circles across it in a comforting motion. Then there was also the emotion shining in her eyes to consider. There was sorrow there, protective compassion, and also another emotion, so intense it almost blanketed the other ones. Passionate, ferocious, all-consuming. It was love that shone there, and although Kallie might have been able to explain that to herself as the familial sort, for the two girls practically were family, the last emotion, combined with another, subtle thing, were what made Kallie certain she was right. Every time Holly J writhed or moaned with pain, Fiona winced minutely. It was barely there though, like whenever someone would suddenly touch Fiona or surprise her, yet it was different for one reason only: there was lust in Fiona's eyes.

"Just breathe through it."

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><p><strong>AN 2: Am I using Folly J as a plot device, you ask me? Why yes, I answer you, yes I am. Does this mean Fallie is going to happen soon, you ask me? Maybe, maybe not, I answer you. You will just have to wait and see.**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Okay, so I discovered I can upload from my phone, so… hooray! This chapter's pretty short, the first part of it was written while I still had writer's block. I'm quite happy with the second half though, I'm trying to use less dialogue in my writing unless it's necessary. It's quite a bit different for me, though, so tell me which you prefer I guess. =)**

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><p>Kallie paced back and forth across the florescent-lit hallway, her lip wedged between her teeth and her nails digging into her palms so hard they were both starting to draw blood. Her breath was ragged and anxious, at least when she wasn't holding it in to try not to notice the smell of disinfectant, latex, and blood. Anya sat in a nearby chair, her brows tilted in concern; not only was she concerned for Holly J, but for the brunette before her that was nearly wearing a rut into the dull tile, converse scuffing across the floor rhythmically. It made sense, Anya thought, that the girl be nervous in that sort of way that indicated bad experience with hospitals. The darker haired girl continued to watch her counterpart, speaking only when she saw Kallie's pace quicken and breath become increasingly panicked.<p>

"Hey," Kallie wheeled around, releasing her now-blooded lip with a soft popping noise. Her usually calm and analyzing grey eyes were filled with terror now, and she was nearly hyperventilating. Anya stood and walked over to her, rubbing a hand up and down her arm comfortingly. "It's going to be okay. She's going to be okay."

She nodded half-heartedly, clearly not in complete agreement. "Right. You're probably right. But… if you're not, what happens next?"

"I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. A transplant, I guess?"

"Transplant, right. Ideally they'll need someone of the same blood type, but a compatible one would also work, but there's a larger chance the donor organ will be rejected. Even better is an organ from family members. Do you think Holly J has a rare blood type? She seems the sort that would. Not that blood types have anything to do with your personality or anything, but I'm just saying."

"Kallie."

"Sorry. It's just-"

Fiona interrupted them, walking out from the room where Holly J was in. "Well. Good news or bad news?"

"Bad news?" Anya smiled reluctantly, seeing that Kallie was in no state to choose either option, though the question had been more directed at her.

"Well, Holly J's kidneys are starting to fail."

"I can't possibly imagine what good news there could be, then."

"Well, if she goes to dialysis every day, hydrates, and relaxes, her kidneys can still hold out for a couple months yet. More than enough time to get her a kidney, and if worst comes to worst, enough time for her to get a kidney from the donor list." Kallie seemed to mull something over in her head, her voice coming quite a bit stronger than it had been while she was talking to Anya.

"Months… if Holly J doesn't find someone that'll give her their kidney, she could miss Yale, couldn't she?"

"Uh… yeah. That was kind of the secret bad news you guys weren't supposed to know about." Fiona sighed, sending a wistful gaze through the window in the door to Holly J's dialysis room, watching her as she talked with her doctor and mother.

* * *

><p>"I'm telling you, Imogen, it'd really be best if you not ask Clare to help you with the play. After all, Love Roulette is sort of Eli's passive aggressive assault on her."<p>

"I just want to be as prepared as possible for the play." The eclectic girl shut her locker door, turning around to face Kallie with a smile. "Besides, you're a little late. I've already spoken to her and she'll help me, on one condition."

The slightly taller girl raised her eyebrows, flicking her long side bangs out of her face. Her intense grey eyes met with Imogen's cheerful brown ones for a long moment before her gaze flickered down towards their feet and sighed. "Fine, fine. As long as she's okay with it. Now what was her condition; nothing crazy, is it?"

Imogen giggled and shook her head, her fingers encircling Kallie's wrist, lightly pulling the brunette behind her as she walked towards their homeroom; Kallie realized they shared the class just a few days prior, around the same time she and the rest of her social circle learned of Holly J's kidneys starting to fail. In that short time frame, the time that Kallie usually spent with either Holly J or Fiona was now spent with the quirky girl now dragging her through Degrassi's bustling halls. Fiona spent nearly every waking moment making sure Holly J was well hydrated and wasn't working herself too hard, while the redhead herself divided her time between resting and making sure Katie had the fashion show under control. Of course that, and Kallie's complete lack of actual classes with the two meant that she hadn't really spoken at length with either in two days. Plus, Adam's new position as head of lighting for the play, and his co-hosting of Degrassi's radio show meant she didn't see him a whole lot either; her relationships with Clare and Eli were even more strained. Imogen was good company though, sure a little dramatic, weird, and nosy, but she really was a good friend and did the best to keep Kallie's mind off of things. In fact, Kallie quite enjoyed her presence and though it took a little while to get used to Imogen's various moods and personas, once she had, her and the actress became nearly inseparable.

It was strange, the brunette had originally thought, how she could fall in so easily with all these people in different ways; people she would have normally not mixed well at all with. It was as if oil and vinegar had suddenly become water, and entire social circles were now overlapping; gaming nerds, drama kids, journalism buffs, and popular seniors were now somehow intertwined in an odd harmony Kallie found herself marvelling at. At the same time though, there were invisible paper-thin walls dividing the group, and Kallie now had to wonder if it had always been like this at Degrassi- cliques all just meshing and being mixed together until everything was in shades of grey, but still being separated by the never-ending drama that hung over the community school like a storm cloud.

As they reached the class, Imogen spun around, grabbing hold of Kallie's other wrist with her free hand and lightly dragging her into the room. Despite her dour mood this morning, Kallie found Imogen's grin to be infectious, and couldn't help but smile back at the beaming girl; who could resist smiling at a girl with fuzzy cat ears on her head, anyways? Spotting her now-lightened expression, the brunette noticed the other girl had to bite back an even greater grin as she towed them to the back of the room.

Kallie slipped into her desk, sitting sideways in her chair with her head propped up by her right arm. Lazily she allowed herself to slip into an only semi-attentive state, silently observing the other students in the classroom, also awaiting their homeroom teacher to arrive for role call. Most of them were bustling, talking amongst themselves as was normal for a bright Wednesday morning. The only exceptions to this sat at the very rear of the class; Imogen, Katie, and herself were all silent- for the most part, anyways, considering Imogen's restless finger-drumming and humming as she sat cross-legged on the top of her desk. Katie sat beside Imogen, her head bowed low as she read her math textbook and quietly nibbled on her fingernails. Normal behaviour for both girls, though Kallie had found Katie only chewed her nails when she was in a more anxious mood, brought on by something that although Kallie distantly suspected, she didn't really wonder at too much.

The girl in question suddenly raised her head and looked over at Kallie, a startlingly accusatory look in her eye that caused the brunette to softly gasp and snap her gaze down to the tile floors. She heard Imogen's drumming slow, her whistling suddenly veering off as she felt her inquisitive gaze on her. Then, she felt both pairs of orbs leave her form as the door to the classroom was loudly shut and their teacher strolled in and begun calling out names.

"Alistair, Jen?"

"Right in front of you."

"Don't make me give you a detention for being a smart mouth, Miss Alistair. Barrera, Kallie?"

Kallie tilted her chin up, raising her head just a little, though her grey orbs were still glued to the floor in a mixture of shock and shame at being caught staring at Katie; two emotions she knew she shouldn't be feeling, but feelings that had been roused by the intensity in which the journalist had gazed upon her nonetheless. "Present, sir."


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: And now back to our regularly scheduled fanfiction-ing.**

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><p>About halfway through her day, Kallie found herself being dragged into a classroom yet again, this time by a different person for a much different reason. Another difference between the two occurrences were how she was brought into the room. Imogen's manner had been gentle, carefree, and almost fairy-like in it's elegance and innocence, whereas this time around it was hurried and urgent, causing Kallie to stumble over her feet a few times on the way into the darkened class.<p>

The door swung shut, closing with a muted bang. If Kallie hadn't trusted the person who was in the room with her with her life, she would have no doubt found herself exceedingly anxious and on-guard. But, she did, and so she lankily made her way over to one of the desks in the front row and pulled herself up to sit on it, dangling her feet just centimetres above the ground.

"Zombie infestation or giant half-metal dragon god?" Kallie chuckled at Adam's perplexed expression. She sobered quickly though, when she realized whatever it was was serious enough that Adam didn't find her questioning if some sort of apocalypse had broken out funny. "Hey, fellow grasshopper. What's going on?"

"If a girl invites you to strut your stuff then agrees to be your fancy-walking partner and asks to see your Blue Steel, it means she likes you, right?" Adam breathed out in a rush, and though he was making next to no sense, Kallie still knew him well enough to piece things together.

"Katie asked you to volunteer for the fashion show?" The boy nodded, tapping his nose lightly. "Well it damn well sounds like she was flirting, what are you talking to me for? Go practice or flirt or something."

"Well I haven't exactly decided if I'm gonna-" Kallie seized ahold of his bicep roughly, all but throwing him out of the classroom in a completely exaggerated manner.

"GO, MAN! GO GET YOUR WOMAN!" She hollered this, waving her arms around romantically as she half-leaned out of the classroom. Adam nodded hurriedly, clearly caught off guard by Kallie's actions before turning to rush away.

The brunette remained in her position for a while longer, her brow furrowing as she tried to place why the current situation felt so… odd. Really, that was the only word for it. And then out of the blue it hit her, and she couldn't help but laugh as she began to stroll down the hallway once more. The reason she felt so weirdly after her dramatic outburst was due to _no one else blinking twice_. They hadn't even glanced over or missed a stride. Simply as if people yelling randomly was a common occurrence in those halls. She shook her head, chuckling again. Of course it was a common occurrence, Degrassi had to be the drama capital of Ontario, if not all of Canada.

As Kallie finally reached her destination, not a minute after talking- or rather shouting- to Adam, and only five minutes after her block began, she was rather thrown by what she saw. There, in the middle of the library, she saw Jake and Clare locked at the lips. She cleared her throat, taking great amusement as the two students launched themselves apart. With a smirk on her face and a single brow arched, she watched as Clare's face turned red-hot at being discovered making out with her boyfriend.

"Well, good to know that books set the mood. That'll help a lot with my next girlfriend." Kallie winked at them as Jake chuckled.

"So this is your gay friend. Glad to finally meet you in person. " He walked over to where Kallie stood, looking down at her. He seemed to be contemplating her, and more specifically, his eyes were trained on Kallie's clothing and hair. His finger drummed on his chin as he spoke, still thoughtfully staring at the smaller student. "A disappointing lack of flannel, I guess Degrassi's dress code doesn't have exceptions for anyone." She snorted, taken off guard by Jake's musings, even moreso by his idea that because of her sexual orientation, she should be able to break dress code.

"Alas, no. I must leave my plaid and rainbow suspenders in my narnia-wardrobe."

"Narnia-wardrobe. That's clever."

"She was serious. She actually has a wardrobe." Clare dryly piped in, "You know if not for Kallie's dislike of chicken I'd think you two were twins."

Jake's eyes immediately widened and his mouth tightened into a firm line as he leaned forewords and grabbed the girl by the shoulders. "You don't like chicken?"

"Not a fan of most meats, actually." Kallie nervously smiled.

"Wizardry. There's no way you can dislike meat. No way whatsoever."

Kallie leaned forwards, a mischievous smile on her lips as she put on her very best Hagrid voice. "Didn't ya hear? Ima wizard, Jakey."

Clare sighed, rolling her eyes as the two continued to jokingly bicker. They certainly were eerily similar, from their sandy hair to attitudes. If Clare didn't know better, she'd have sworn they were twins that were separated at birth; at very least siblings. But she knew that to be impossible. Still, Kallie was basically the female version of Jake as far as appearances went. Their only real difference was in height, eye colour, and Kallie's complexion, just a few shades darker than Jake's.

The sophomore silently sighed again as their heated discussion turned to the merits of vegetarianism. Quietly, she turned her back on them and slipped out of the library, nearly colliding with two familiar students passing by. Eli and Fiona had been as deep in conversation as Clare had been in her own thoughts, but luckily they had all been attentive enough to avoid the crash.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't really paying attention," Clare began, instantly being cut off by Eli assuring her everything was fine with a gleam in his eye and a sly smirk. Fiona, though she just as quickly dismissed Clare's apologies, lingered on the subject for longer than Eli had, curious to what the other girl had been so lost in thought about.

"It's no problem, it was equally our fault anyways… what's up, Clare?"

She blinked, caught off guard for a moment by the question. Though Fiona was a friend of Eli, Kallie, and Adam's, and Adam's ex girlfriend additionally, they had never really talked. Aside from the time Fiona had come to the lovers lunch drunk and complimented Clare's eyes, that was. Needless to say, when news came to the girl about the other being a lesbian, she wasn't exactly surprised. But she answered nevertheless, a reassuring smile directed at Fiona.

"I was just going to get some fresher air. The library's practically reeking of testosterone; Jake and Kallie are arguing about meat."

"I thought Kallie was a vegetarian?" Eli inquired skeptically.

"She is, sort of. She doesn't really label it, but she avoids meat when she can. That's kind of what the argument's about."

"Let me guess, chicken-boy doesn't believe anyone can go without eating meat without being clinically insane."

"Pretty much."

Fiona smiled, lightly touching Clare's shoulder as she breezed past her towards the library's entrance. "Well, glad we ran into you then, Clare. I've actually been needing to talk to Kallie about something." She blinked, nodding as the older girl moved past her, internally cringing as she realized it was just her and Eli out in the hall now.

"Well, I better go grab Jake then. I'll see you later, Eli." Clare quickly excused herself, rushing back into the school library before the gothic boy could get another word out.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: So. Adam's probably gonna get shot. Which sucks. Luckily we can all live in the denial-land that is AU fanfiction. Yeah.**

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><p>The library seemed eerily quiet to Fiona, now that Clare had hauled Jake off, and Kallie was sitting across from her with rapt attention. They seemed to be the only ones there; even the librarian must've gone home already. In the elderly teacher's place was a dinosaur of a computer with a state of the art scanner attached to it that beeped every so often. The only other source of sound was the monotonous ticking of the clock on the other end of the room, handing just above the large glass windows that encircled the entire library.<p>

Her eyes sliding back to Kallie, she noticed that the girl seemed more tired than she had in weeks previous, the ever so light circles under her eyes were now more pronounced, but they would still go unnoticed unless you were staring, or knew what to look for. Her skin was also paler, no longer the colour of the tea with two creams she knew Kallie to drink in the morning. Her hair, too, had lightened just slightly, but from the sun that Toronto had been continually bathed in that year. The most noticeable change was within her eyes though, they seemed sober where they had once been full of life. Holly J's current state had taken a subtle toll on Kallie, as well.

"You look tired." she stated.

"So do you." Kallie smiled slightly, of course taking note of the way Fiona's shoulders slumped, and her hair fell; the dark ringlets were loose and messy instead of the usual tight curls and clean lines.

"Yeah, well, you should see Holly J." She half-smiled wearily. As Kallie reached a hand out, she was taken aback when her thumb gently swiped across her cheek; Fiona realized she was crying. The lighter haired girl pushed herself out of her chair, walking around the table they were both seated at and sitting next to Fiona instead. She took the girl's hand with one of her own, gently squeezing it as she enveloped her in a hug with the other.

When Fiona's ragged breathing finally evened out, Kallie pulled back to allow her to speak, though Fiona's hand was still tightly wrapped around Kallie's. "None of her family are matches and… I think- we think- she might be adopted. There are no pictures of her during what should have been her first Christmas." Kallie's face fell even more at this, and gave Fiona's hand a squeeze, knowing fully well there was nothing she could say in that moment that would comfort either of them. Instead, she allowed herself to lean forewords and wrap Fiona's form in another, more gentle, hug. She felt Fiona sigh against her shoulder as they both relaxed into the embrace, and for at least a moment, everything was alright again.

* * *

><p>The music pounded through the dressing rooms, with Kallie finding herself dancing about with Adam, both 'models' already dressed in their tuxedo tees and slacks. As Adam spontaneously spun Kallie outwards, she snatched a fedora from a nearby rack before spinning back in and placed it on Adam's head. She winked at him, quickly dancing away towards where in just a few minutes, they would step out onto the catwalk and escort their partners down.<p>

The boy appeared right behind her, flicking off the hat and tossing it to Kallie. He rolled his eyes as she caught it, and shrugged. She placed it upon her own crown, over her hair that though usually razor-straight, was now styled in slight waves. With the fedora on, the not-so-classic visage was complete. Looking at her now, Adam thought that it would be impossible for anyone to think that she'd belong in a dress. Though a girl through and through, Kallie was born to wear a tux- or at the very least, a t-shirt with a tuxedo print on the front.

Kallie then turned away, arching back to grab Adam's arm and tug him along to the line of models now awaiting for their names to be announced. Fifteen minutes after they had joined the line, Adam strut forewords, taking Katie's arm. Kallie watched with a smile as they started to walk forwards, peeking her head past the curtains blocking her view of the stage even though she wasn't supposed to. She saw as the two amateur models reached the end of the catwalk, Adam reach for Katie's hand and place a light kiss upon in, rewarded in ear-to-ear grins from both Kallie and Katie. Then though, she was forced to duck her head back in by the sight of Holly J in the crowd, waving at her to do so.

Then, the pair returned and Adam passed Kallie, exchanging a high five with her as she awaited Dave to call out for her. And so the announcement came, and Kallie couldn't help the grin that returned to her face.

"Finally, last but _certainly_ not least; Degrassi's very own fashionista, accompanied by Degrassi's very own girl allergic to skirts. Give it up for Fiona and Kallie!"

She and Fiona strode forwards simultaneously, the other girl's dainty arm slipping easily through Kallie's. Fiona's hair was pinned up in a loose bun, a few of her curls falling loose and elegantly around her face. The dress she wore was a silver number, floor length in the back and just a few inches shorter in the front, so her heels could be seen. She glanced over at Kallie, smiling slightly as she noticed the girl blatantly check her out, oblivious to the fact she had already missed their cue.

Fiona lightly tugged on Kallie's arm, causing the junior's gaze to snap back up and take notice of their cue being given a second time by Anya, standing just beside the stage, being cloaked by shadows to all except the models. A bit flustered, she regained her composure and lead Fiona across the catwalk, noticing Holly J give Fiona a knowing smirk as they reached the end. They swivelled around then, before strutting back up the walkway and turning one last time to face the crowd before parting and heading to their respective dressing rooms.

As soon as Kallie re-entered the makeshift dressing room, she was quickly intercepted by an already-changed Adam. A massive smile was plastered across his face as he enthused about the night. "Katie asked me out on a date! Can you believe it? A girl asked _me _on a date! And she's not a lesbian this time! …at least I hope so. And you!" He motioned to her as she lifted the hat off of her head and tossed it back onto the shelf she got it from. "You were on fire, hands down you and Fiona were the best models of the night."

Kallie scoffed, pulling the t-shirt over her head unashamedly, despite the room being filled with guys, most of which didn't lower their eyes as Adam did as she slipped back into her black wife beater. She glanced at Adam as she was slipping back into her jeans, her voice ripe with sarcasm. "I'm so glad to know that I was a capable walker. I've only been doing it for most of my life."

The boy raised his gaze again only when he was sure Kallie was done changing, shoving her in the shoulder playfully. "Oh come on, it had nothing to do with walking. I meant you two had the best chemistry."

"Psh, as if. You and Katie? Now that's chemistry."

"Maybe so, but Fiona was nearly undressing you with her eyes that entire time." The brunette chuckled throatily, causing the sophomore to furrow his brow. He hadn't said anything remotely funny, yet here Kallie was laughing in a strange way he imagined a person might if someone were to tell them that ducks quack. "What, what?"

"Nothing, it's just that I was right; Fiona was your last girlfriend, wasn't she?"

"Uh, yeah, but what does that have to…" Suddenly, the ball had dropped for Adam and a look of surprise flashed across his face. "_Oh,_ she hasn't told you she's gay yet."

Kallie hummed thoughtfully then as she exited the dressing room. "Not exactly, but I pretty much guessed due to a couple of things."

"I'm probably gonna regret asking, but what things?"

"Well, for one, you said the last girl you had a crush on ended up being a lesbian, and Fiona told me you two used to casually date. Secondly, Fiona had a mysterious roommate she liked to talk about basically 24/7, even though she's loaded and shouldn't need to have a roommate to split the bills. Third, Anya slipped up a bit and almost outed someone that I guessed she wasn't sure wether they wanted to be out or not. And finally, Holly freakin' J,"

"What does Holly J have to do with anything?" Adam inquired, right as Anya crossed their path. As nonchalantly as she could while not breaking stride, she spoke.

"Fiona was in love with Holly J, I'm pretty sure she still kind of is."

"What? What is this wizardry?"

"Ugh, I'm gonna stop you there before you start to sound even more like Jake and start claiming that I'm not a red-blooded American. And then I'll have to kindly remind you we're both Canadian, and it'll just be very ugly." Kallie sighed morosely as Adam broke into peals of side-splitting laughter beside her.

* * *

><p><strong>AN 2: As you can tell by this point, Kadam's gonna happen, not Krew. I don't like Krew, and Adam needs him a girlfriend. **

**¯\_(ツ)_/¯ What can I say? Adam/Happiness is my OTP.**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: So… I totally don't know what Dawn's last name is, or if Degrassi even gave her one so I gave her the most generic last name I could think of. Oh well. c: Anyhow, there's not very much Fallie in this chapter, it's mostly Kallie interacting with other characters, and setting up an important event later in the fic.**

* * *

><p>The next day was eventful, to say the least.<p>

As soon as Kallie walked into the school, she was promptly greeted by one unfortunate freshman turning his head and scoffing out, "Dyke." She chuckled as she realized Jake, who had been standing near the doors talking to Clare, swivelled his head around at the would-be-insult and replied to the boy in a cheerful yet threatening tone while he squared his shoulders in such a way that reminded him Jake was nearly a foot taller than him, and definitely a hell of a lot stronger, too.

"Aw, you're just jealous she gets more action than you do. Now I'm sure Kallie's a pretty good sport, but unluckily for you, I'm not. So next time I hear you muttering derogatory remarks under your breath, you might find yourself shoved into your locker. Just a careful reminder." The sight of the freshman's face as he realized he had just misjudged the school's hierarchy made for certain that the 'next time' would never come, for him, or for anyone else in the school. He and his group of weaselly friends scurried off quickly then, as Kallie furrowed her brows and smirked at them. Then, she turned to Jake, lightly chuckling.

"Wow. Derogatory; did Clare teach you that word?"

"Actually I did. And here I thought he didn't absorb it. Not sure how I feel about him using it to threaten kids half his size, though."

Kallie softly tutted whilst still grinning widely at Jake. "I'm sure you wouldn't much like it if he used it to threaten people his size, either; I'll see you guys, I need to talk to Imogen before class starts." The pair nodded, and Kallie slipped away towards her locker, where she knew Imogen would be waiting.

On her walk there, she glimpsed Adam talking to Katie out of the corner of her eye and carefully slowed her pace, while not making it too obvious she had done so. Watching out of that same corner of her eye, she saw Adam step closer to Katie, the smile on his face almost predatory in it's flirtatiousness.

"So… movie tonight, seven? My treat." Adam's voice was slightly huskier than usual, and Kallie slowed her pace even further so she wouldn't have to turn down another hall before hearing Katie's response.

"I'm surprised you have to ask. But I'm paying for my ticket."

Grinning contently, the brunette resumed her former pace, turning around the corner and proceeding to her locker where sure enough, Imogen sat cross-legged. Today she was back to wearing her hair in those bizarre pony tails that she tended to put her hair into, but today she had seemingly decided to wear contacts instead of her glasses. Kallie sauntered over to her, offering a hand to the eclectic youth and pulled her up onto her feet. Imogen instantly greeted her with a hug and a squeal; she bounced around the hallway while Kallie amusedly watched her.

Imogen bounced back over to her a few moments later, wrapping her arms around Kallie and playfully placing an enthusiastic smooch on the tip of her nose. "Mwuah!"

The brunette cringed slightly and chuckled as she wiped the back of her hand across her nose. "Someone's excited. Care to tell me why you left me ten messages last night and now have the sudden urge to make out with my schnoz?"

"I got the part of Clara and me and Eli- well, Clara and Ali- kissed!"

"Congratulations, that's awesome! You two will be going on double dates with Adam and Katie in no time flat."

Imogen's eyes widened. "Adam and Katie are going out now?" The brunette nodded in confirmation, Imogen quickly exclaiming in delight. "I knew Katie liked him! She had hearts with Adam's name in it all over her notebook. I think it was her notebook, anyways."

"Imogen, _what_ did I tell you about creeping and spying?"

"It's not spying, it's observing from a distance without the target's knowledge and/or consent." Kallie's narrowed eyes reprimanded Imogen, though she couldn't quite fight the small smile that sprung up at Imogen's completely serious statement. Finally though, Imogen conceded, sighing out in response to the other girl's question. "Not to do it because other people's business is private and one of these days I'll end up getting a restraining order filed against me… But you know, you really should take your own advice. I doubt you learned that Adam and Katie were dating by asking."

"I- but that's different."

"Oh, of course it is. So if I go up to Katie and tell her you were eavesdropping on her private conversations, she'll have no problem with it, right?"

Kallie crossed her arms, huffing as she began to briskly walk away from her locker, with Imogen lightly jogging to catch up to her. "Damn you, Imo."

"So you admit that you haven't been taking your own advice?"

"Yes, yes, I admit it. But come on, there has to be a loophole for when two of your friends start to see each other."

"And which friends would that be?" Fiona questioned as they rounded the corner. She and Holly J were standing just in front of Anya's locker while said girl was presumably grabbing her books for her next class. Kallie's gaze instantly flickered over to Holly J instead though, noticing that although still tired-looking, she had a spark in her eye that she didn't before.

"Kadam," Imogen stated in a matter-of-fact way. "Katie and Adam. They're going to a movie tonight at seven o'clock."

"Yea- wait." The junior back-pedalled, staring at her counterpart. "I never told you that part… Imogen! What did I tell you!"

"That there should be loopholes for when two of your friends start to see each other." Kallie instinctively covered her face with her palm, letting out a weary sigh before she changed the subject.

"So, what are you three up to?"

"We were just telling Anya-" The dark-haired girl lifted her head out of her locker momentarily as her name was mentioned, "-some news," Holly J began. "It's good. Sort of. It turns out I'm adopted, so there's a chance I can still get a kidney."

"That's more than good, that's great."

"Yeah, now there's a much larger possibility you won't slowly waste away until dying!" The faces both Fiona and Kallie made at Imogen after she said that was enough to made the girl nod then hang her head. "Right… I'm just gonna go to class. See you later, Kal." The brunette rolled her eyes and nodded, smiling yet again as the other junior whisked herself away.

"Sorry about her," Kallie apologized for Imogen's previous… questionable statement. "She means well, she's just a little odd about it. Anyways, you were saying?"

Holly J smiled, shaking her head. "That's fine; My birth mother turned out to be some woman named Dawn. I was going to contact her, but I'm not exactly sure what to say, aside from 'Hi, this is your birthdaughter. May I have your kidney?'"

"To be honest, if I was your birthmom I'd give you my kidney if you told me that." Anya piped in like her usual chipper and partially sarcastic self. However, the comment that would've normally brought a grin to Kallie's face had no effect on her as she furrowed her brow in puzzlement.

"Dawn, huh?"

"Yeah, it's quite the name, that's for sure. At least now I know what kind of person would name me Holly."

"It's Holly _Jeanette._"

"Thanks Fi, because I wasn't aware of what my middle name was."

Fiona pulled a face, crinkling up her nose and dryly replying. "Funny. That was a joke, Holly J."

"For the sake of all of us, please never make a joke that doesn't involve heavily layered sarcasm ever again." Anya begged.

Holly J then seemed to notice Kallie's silence, she still seemed to be deep in thought, a slight scowl on her face. "Hey… what's up?"

The brunette snapped her gaze up, being knocked out of her trace. "Nothing… it's just… do you know what her last name is?"

"Uh, Johnson I think, why?" Kallie's eyes widened considerably and Fiona and Anya exchanged a befuddled glance as Holly J still intently stared at the younger girl.

"Holly J…" she began quietly, "I think… I think we might have the same father."

* * *

><p><strong>AN 2: Dun dun duuuun! Curveball. So what do you guys think about Holly J and Kallie maybe-being half sisters?**


	27. Chapter 27

The shock that ripped through their small circle- or rather, diamond- was nearly deafening in it's utter silence. Kallie felt, rather than saw, Anya's motions still to her right, the girl blinking in utter surprise. The other two girls in front of her were completely motionless, and if not for the students still weaving through the halls, and the sounds of their breath, she would have sworn time had taken a sudden stop. Finally, Fiona's jaw came agape comically, as if it had simply been unhinged. Still, Anya was the first to recover as she chuckled nervously.

"Huh?"

"My… dad. When he was younger he got a girl named Dawn John-something-or-other pregnant. It would've been nearly 18 years ago." Kallie spoke slowly, her eyes narrowed just slightly and sliding about as if she didn't quite believe it herself. "I think he mentioned once she was a redhead, but I can't be sure. It was almost five years ago, last he talked about it."

"Are you sure?" Fiona seemed to recover from the initial shock of Kallie's abrupt statement, and now started to drill the younger girl with questions. "Who's your dad? What's he like? Why'd he leave Holly J's birth mother? Why doesn't he talk about it anymore? Who's your mom?"

"Fi!" Holly J interjected then, instinctively turning to sarcasm. "Why don't you drag Kallie down to the police station so this can be an official interrogation?" She winced at her best friend's words, apologetically casting her gaze downwards.

"It's fine, Holly J. Those were all important and relevant questions that'll need to be answered sooner or later. Like I said, I can't be sure about a lot of the details, since it was a long time ago. But I'm certain her name was Dawn and it was sometime during the early 90s. As for the other questions… at the risk of sounding sketchy, most of those are on a need-to-know basis. I'm pretty sure he and his Dawn weren't really that serious though, so if Holly J does end up being that Dawn's daughter, she must've been an accident- no offence, Holly J."

"Why's it need-to-know?" Anya inquired, only half-seriously.

"Let's just say there are certain things about the answers to those questions that would be better for you all not to know, and some things that would be better for me for you all not to know."

"Okay, _now_ you're sounding sketchy." Fiona sighed, though the fact Kallie's parents were either invisible or absent in the girl's life already gave her an inkling towards the answer of at least one of the 'taboo' questions.

"Anyways, there's really only one way to find out if she is who she is. Contact her somewhere and ask her out for coffee. I'll tag along, ask her if she knows my dad, and if he was the one who knocked her up, then I just gained a sister."

* * *

><p>The reply came sooner than either girl expected, agreeing to the proposed meeting that day after school at The Dot. Though it meant Kallie would have to shove off some of her duties as the play's lead composer to Sav, she left immediately after the last bell rung, heading straight to the cafe without even changing out of her uniform. When she reached her destination, the girl glanced inside, but unable to see anyone who fit the description of Dawn, she sat outside to wait for the woman and Holly J.<p>

Fortunately, Holly J was first to reach Kallie. The brunette internally cringed at the prospect of seeing Dawn first; though basically asking a complete stranger if her father knocked her up was awkward, doing it alone while waiting for the girl she had actually agreed to meet with was an even more frightening prospect.

The pair of maybe-sisters headed inside then, sitting down at a table directly across from the door so as soon as Dawn walked in, they would know it- or should, anyways. But sure enough, at four o'clock on the dot, ironically enough, a tired-looking woman trudged in with a pair of kids in tow. Holly J stood nervously, raising a hand in greeting.

"Dawn? I'm Holly J Sinclair. You agreed to meet me here?" The woman made her way over to them with a terse smile. She sat in the chair across from Kallie, her presumed children sharing the only other available seat at the table.

"Yes, I remember. You believe you are my daughter?"

"Actually ma'am, I know. I filed a request form to get your contact information."

"Right. Well it's nice to see you again after all these years, Holly." The shortened form of Holly J's name caused an obvious reaction from the girl, but she quickly bit back the instinctive response no doubt itching to come out. The silence between them stretching on, Dawn turned to Kallie. "And your friend?"

"Kallie. It's nice to meet you. Actually there are a couple of reasons we wanted to meet you. Neither of which have really any elegant and non-wierd way to say. So first of all, do you know a Charles Kennedy?" The woman blinked in blatant surprise, her eyes then narrowing and her lips pursing.

"Is this some sort of joke?"

"No ma'am." Holly J quickly intervened, "We were wondering if he… was my father?"

The brunette nodded in agreement. "He's my dad."

"Oh. I… I see, then. In that case, yes… he is." Though the confirmation had been expected, it still took both girls off-guard, and they looked to one another. Under normal circumstances one of the two would've made some sort of remark such as 'Hey, sis!' or 'Well family reunions just got a hell of a lot bigger', but the second, more touchy question still needed to be asked, and Kallie was always the person to deliver under stressful and awkward situations.

"Hi, I'm your baby daddy's daughter, may my half-sister have your kidney?"

* * *

><p>"So she just said no," Anya snapped her fingers. "Just like that?"<p>

"Well, not exactly. She said she'd get tested to see if she was type A, which she is, but she wants 20 grand. Fiona volunteered to get her the money, but thankfully I do have a backup plan."

They were in Fiona's condo, Kallie sitting blindfolded on the couch while the owner of the space buzzed around, decorating for the party that would be underway in only an hour more. Anya remained in the same room as Kallie, keeping her company while also preparing drinks- non alcoholic of course, which they would have been even if Fiona wasn't the host- and snacks. Holly J was in Fiona's room, catching up on much-needed hours of sleep before the get together would occur; after all, she needed it.

Kallie uncomfortably tugged on the blindfold tied tightly to her head. If she wanted to, she could simply rip it off, and though Anya wouldn't care, nor would she tell the hostess, it remained on simply because Kallie was flattered by Fiona's utter insistence she throw a massive birthday bash for her in her loft- provided Anya and Owen steer clear of her room and mattress. Besides, she had already dashed Fiona's hopes of getting the girl into a dress, being a good sport was the least she could do.

"Backup plan?"

"Yeah. Holly J and Fiona don't know yet, and I'd appreciate it if you kept it hush. The other day I went to the hospital and got my blood test done. I'm a match." Kallie cringed as she heard glass shatter against the floor, instantly bringing Fiona running in from the foyer.

"What happened- Anya!"

"Sorry! They're uh… they're slippery. Besides, they're the crappy glasses."

"I don't _have _crappy glasses."

"But I do. You don't think I'd let you use all that fancy glassware for a high school shindig, did you?" Kallie cut in, turning her head towards the approximate location of the wealthy girl.

"But it's your birthday."

"Yeah, and I'll have plenty more that may or may not involve glasses that are worth more than some people's cars. Believe me, people will be plenty impressed by these. After all, most of those brainless jocks you invited have probably never even encountered a glass that wasn't red, plastic, and contained cheap beer at a party."

"Touche." she sighed, no doubt motioning for Anya to grab a broom and dustpan. "Clean this mess up, Ahn. I'll be out in the hall decorating if you need anything. And for god's sakes, be careful with the fragile stuff."

"Right."

The sound of footfalls passed by Kallie, and a door shut soon after. Kallie released a breath she hadn't known herself to be holding before stretching her muscles and lying down on the couch. Several minutes passed before Anya next spoke.

"Are you really?"

"Yeah." Kallie breathed out, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "I've already told Mrs. Sinclair, and she set up Holly J's surgery appointment."

"Are you sure? I mean, I love ya and all, Kal, but we haven't even known you for a month. You're really gonna give Holly J an organ?" Anya's voice was closer now, and Kallie felt the couch cushion near her feet sink under the other girl's weight. "She wouldn't hold it against you if you didn't."

"Anya, believe me. I'm not doing this because I have to, or feel compelled to, or whatever. I'm doing this because I want to. You guys are family- Holly J just happens to be so literally, and that works out in both of our favours. Holly J's getting her kidney, and I'll be damned if it doesn't come from me."


	28. Chapter 28

Shortly after she and Anya's conversation, Kallie found herself being brought to her feet by Fiona and guided into her room. Kallie had to blink as bright light suddenly flooded her eyes after the other girl had virtually ripped the blindfold off of her head. Her groan was immediate, squinting her eyes while trying to get adjusted to her surroundings, with Fiona then mumbling an apology for the abrupt de-folding.

When her orbs finally adjusted, she had to blink again in surprise at what was lying on the bed. Her head half-turning to Fiona, she shared an amused smile with the girl.

"Imogen?"

"Yep. Not only can she spy, she can pick locks too."

"I swear," Kallie sighed, crossing the room to stand over the clothing laying on the bed, "If I were anyone else I might be angry about one of my friends breaking into my house and stealing my formalwear."

"Which is what we were depending on. Now hurry up and get changed, I don't want you being half-naked- or worse, in jeans- when people start to get here."

"Yes, master." She rolled her eyes, immediately beginning to change as soon as Fiona exited the room. Despite her joking response, Kallie knew that Fiona hadn't been when she directed the other girl to hurry. The brunette smiled to herself, thinking it ironic how Fiona rushed her while on the other hand, Fiona was running about in a T-shirt and sweats still.

She finished getting dressed, tightening her tie expertly while observing herself in the mirror. The suit lacked a jacket, instead it was made up of a grey waistcoat and trousers, with a dress shirt and sea foam green tie. Her motions stilled for only a moment, her brow furrowing as she considered the tie. She didn't believe herself to own a tie of that colour, and quickly chuckled at Fiona's predictability. Of course she'd buy Kallie a tie. Knowing her, she had probably originally set out to buy an entire tuxedo, only stopping when she realized that she must be insane to think Kallie would accept a gift of that magnitude. Or at least, something along those lines.

Finally content with her outfit, Kallie strolled out into the main room of the apartment once again while nervously fiddling with the buttons on her vest. Holly J now stood in front of a floor-length mirror in an emerald green dress, Anya standing nearby with a black and white number folded over her arm and holding a pair of earrings to the side of her face, questioning the redhead what she thought. Rolling her eyes at their lengthly discussion on accessories, the brunette whisked herself away, out of the apartment and into the decorated foyer.

The large hall was mainly decorated with white and red roses, a theme that carried into the apartment. Additionally, sheer silver sheets were draped around, and the lights in the adjoined lobby were dimmed. Peeking into the aforementioned room, Kallie noticed that the doorman was nowhere to be seen, presumably Fiona had paid him to take the night off, and Imogen now sat behind the sleek black desk. The girl was flipping through what appeared to be a list of attendees, her glasses lying low on her nose.

Kallie walked in front of the desk, catching the brunette's attention. She lifted her head, flashing a wide grin at Kallie and eyeing her outfit casually. "Well don't you look dashing."

"Please tell me that was something Fiona told you to say, and didn't actually come from your mind." Imogen pouted, crossing her arms in front of her chest, paying no attention to the fact she had just wrinkled her pressed blouse.

"I thought it was clever. Besides, shouldn't we be speaking all fancily?"

"I think that'd be a 'no', Imo. This is a lobby, not the Imperial Palace. I'm sure Fi would appreciate the effort, though." She shrugged, looking down to the list and motioning for Kallie to join her.

"Did you know Fiona invited KC? I didn't know you two knew each other."

"We don't. Well, I know who he is because of Clare, Alli, and Jenna, but I've never met him. I don't even know what KC stands for."

"It stands for something?"

Now it was Kallie's turn to shrug. "I'd assume so. God Imo, and you call yourself a professional observer?"

"Only when it comes to people that interest me!"

"Now don't let him hear you say that." Alli's voice came from the front door, both brunettes looking up at her and Clare.

"Oh… you two are early! I mean… greetings, you two certainly look dashing this evening." Imogen turned to Kallie, confused. "Or is dashing only for guys and girls wearing tuxes?"

Kallie smirked, greeting the two girls. "Hey. Fi's apartment is just down the hall, the one on the left. I think Anya's still trying to decide on earrings, so just make yourselves comfortable." They nodded, departing as Kallie and Imogen sat back down to scan through the list of attendees.

* * *

><p>"What are you doing?" Adam shouted at Kallie over the music. She and Holly J were sitting on the couch, idly chatting while the rest of the attendees of the party danced around them.<p>

"What does it look like? I'm sitting down."

"You can't sit down, it's your party. You have to dance!"

"Says who?"

"Me!" The boy edged closer to the pair, holding out his hands. "Come on, let's jitterbug." He demonstrated doing a jive quickly, with Kallie staring at him bemusedly.

"Nicki Minaj is playing, Adam."

"So?"

"You can't jitterbug to Nicki Minaj."

"Care to prove me wrong?" Holly J sighed, motioning for Kallie to go. She did, albeit reluctantly. Adam immediately took ahold of her hand, leading her to the centre of the dance floor. However, needless to say, it was short-lived as Kallie finally took a step back and let out a hearty laugh.

"Seriously Adam? We look like idiots." The boy sighed melodramatically, nodding heavily in agreement.

"Fine, fine. Don't dance. But I expect you to mingle, party-pooper."

The 'party-pooper' groaned at the prospect; though many of the party-goers were goods friends of Kallie and her circle, the majority of the attendees were, of course, people that she had never seen before, and she doubted Fiona had either. So instead of mingling with complete strangers, Kallie trudged off to find the hostess of the party. Last she saw Fiona, the girl had been directing Anya to get the door while she finished changing. That had been half an hour ago.

The brunette craned her neck, trying to spot Fiona in the bustling crowd, to no avail. Though there were many raven-haired females, and even some with Fiona's signature curls, none of them were wearing anything close to what the girl would; her exquisite taste was one of a kind. Deciding to check Fiona's room- though the door had an sign telling the partiers it was off-limits, Kallie figured she had a VIP pass of sorts- she weaved through countless bodies before finally reaching the entrance. Gently, she turned the doorknob and pushed inwards, instantly being greeted by a cool draft.

Sure enough, the door to Fiona's balcony was opened and Kallie padded towards it carefully. As she neared it, she could pick up three voices. The first was all-too easy to identify as Fiona's, but the other two also seemed familiar in a way she couldn't quite place. The second voice wasn't familiar in it's sound, but rather, it's regal tone. The final voice was the one that was odd. She was certain she'd never heard that voice before, but at the same time, although it sounded low enough that it had to be male, it reminded her of Fiona's.

She stepped closer, and despite the urge to eavesdrop on the conversation, she reached out and knocked on the entryway to the balcony before she could allow herself to do so. Instantly, Fiona stepped out from around the corner, her sorrowful expression immediately lightening when she saw the brunette. She greeted the girl with a smile, reaching for her hand and gesturing for her to come out onto the deck with her.

"Fiona, honey, who was that knocking? You really should lock doors while hosting a party-," the regal woman Kallie instantly knew to be Fiona's mother, despite never having seen her photos trailed off and abruptly began again. "Oh dear, pardon me. Laura Coyne." The woman smiled, extending her hand while the young man next to her stood with his hands in his suit pockets.

Kallie, taken a bit off-guard by the formality, took a moment to realize her appropriate hand was still wrapped around Fiona's. She quickly dropped it, reaching forwards to gingerly shake the woman's outstretched hand. "Kallie Barrera, Mrs Coyne. A pleasure." The reply came easily, and she internally cringed at how quickly she could slip back into her formal guise. It was no problem for her to do if it was constant, but going from just-Kallie to Kallie-Amelia-Berrera-Sir so abruptly was something that was never pleasant, for it reminded her of how _false_ that Kallie truly was.

As they released each other's hands, Kallie could see, from the corner of her eye, the other boy- Declan, if she recalled correctly from the brief time Fiona had talked about him- drop his eyes to her feet and then slowly make their way back up her form. The smug smirk that formed on his face made Kallie shudder internally. Perhaps some girls would find him charming, but it had quite the opposite affect on her. In fact, she could almost hear his thought process of _want-take-have_ whirring within his skull.

"Pardon me again, Kallie; Fiona, she is trustworthy?" Fiona sighed from beside her, and she could tell by the pitch and tone of it that she had just rolled her eyes.

"Yes, mom."

Kallie, however, interjected carefully. The way in which she spoke was dripping with warnings, and the way formality gave way to this threatening version of Kallie caused her to actually cringe this time around. "It depends on what you were all talking about. In some cases, it would be best if I were not privy to certain pieces of information." She knew as she said this next bit, her eyes would go cold and dark, in a way no teenager's eyes should ever be. "You are from Manhattan, are you not, Laura? Think carefully about my name before you decide to share with me. If you find me trustworthy enough, this never happened. If you don't, then I will go back into the party, and this still never happened."

She could feel the twins' confusion as they glanced at one another, but her gaze was fixed on the eldest Coyne. A realization slowly crept over her face, but it was an extremely well hidden one. She knew exactly what Kallie was talking about. But, instead, she just shook her head and smiled. "Oh, you artists are always so cryptic. Fiona tells me you're quite an accomplished pianist." And like that, normality was restored, and like she had requested, it was as if her strange speech had never occurred; Fiona's gaze still bored into her, though, and she knew some of the things she had been so careful about, the things she wished to remain hidden, would have to come out sooner than later.

"Only the good ones are, Ma." Declan stated, the flirtatious look he flashed Kallie not being lost on either of the teenage girls.

"In any case, we were discussing what we are to do about Holly J's kidney. She's very important to both of my children, you see, and under normal circumstances we'd pay for the kidney without a batted eyelash. However, it has come to our attention that such a thing would go against the law, which gives us pause for thought."

"You're thinking about the possibility of doing it anyways, and measuring what the consequences of it would be if you were caught." Kallie came to the swift conclusion, which Laura confirmed. "Don't worry about it." Her soft trademark smile returned, though her statement confused the three for a split second before she explained. "I'm of blood relation to Holly J, and have the same blood type. I'm going to give her my kidney. It was going to be a surprise, but I'm sure none of you will say anything."

"You are?" Fiona's exclamation was filled with pure joy, immediately yanking Kallie to her in a triumphant embrace. "Oh my god. I can't even begin to thank you." "Geez sis, by the way you're acting you'd think Holly J was _your_ ex-girlfriend." The blissfully unaware statement caused a brief silence from the other three people populating the terrace, confirming Kallie's near-certainty that Fiona did indeed have feelings for the redhead.

"Oh, shush. She's my best friend."

"And by your vice-grip on Kallie there, I'd say that that position is being threatened." Fiona released the other girl then, huffing and rolling her eyes at Declan.

"Please, I can have more than one best friend. We're not in kindergarten, Decs."

"Now that's the sound of cheerful children. I'll stop taking up your time and let you kids get back to your party." Laura happily stated, briskly leaving them on the balcony.

"Yes, lets." Declan walked over to Kallie, intensely staring down at her. "Would you care to dance, Kallie?" The girl's mouth tightened slightly, trying to search her mind for a respectful way to say 'not in a million years, bub.' when Fiona carefully and level-headedly interjected.

"Now Declan, let's not bombard the poor girl. She just came off the dance floor." _Well, kind of_. Kallie added mentally as Fiona continued, "Why don't you find Holly J and dance with her. I'm pretty sure by this point Imogen should be switching to slow songs, anyways." Declan frowned, his brow creasing as Fiona ushered him away. "Well? Shoo! You're not going to leave a gorgeous girl like Holly J without someone to dance with, are you?"

That seemed to be all it took to convince the male twin as he quickly departed. Fiona craned her neck, watching and making sure he had left before turning back to Kallie. "Sorry. You just looked like you would have rather not, and Declan has a huge ego. No offence to him, but he doesn't tend to understand 'no'."

"Well, you're right there. What do you say we head back in? At least with the addition of slow songs, Adam's hope of jiving to random songs will be pretty much dashed." "He jived?"

"To Super Bass. I think I'm scarred for life, honestly." Fiona giggled, her hand slipping into Kallie's as she led her back into the apartment.

If possible, the place was even more crammed than it had been when Kallie left, and the vast majority of people were crammed into the living room, dancing to their own music as A Moment Like This flooded out of speakers positioned throughout. Pursing her lips in frustration, the brunette shoved herself through the crowd and shut the source of the music, an iPod dock sitting next to the television, off. Instantly, most of the people in the condo stilled. Kallie raised her voice then, commanding the horde of people.

"Hey! If you're not a student of Degrassi Community School, and you don't know both my name and last name, then get the hell out of here before I sic a five foot six teenage girl with a black belt on your asses." Though most of the party did nothing, a few students of Degrassi who knew who she was talking about, but didn't know Kallie personally, quickly made a dash for the door. "She can flip someone twice her size and three times her weight in three seconds flat, and is friends with the soccer team." That caught people's attention, and half of the party's population had soon dispersed. "That's better." She mumbled under her breath, restarting the music and returning to Fiona's side. "Next time, get a better bouncer than Imogen."

"Uh…huh. Can Katie really do that?"

"Mhm, she demonstrated on Mo for me once."

"Who's Mo?"

"Believe me, you'll know him when you see him." Kallie glanced over to a nearby speaker, a smile flitting across her face as the song changed. "You want to dance?" Not waiting for a response, Kallie quickly latched onto Fiona's arm, pulling her out onto the makeshift dance floor. The other girl's eyes widened in mild surprise, nodding belatedly as Kallie slipped her arms around Fiona's neck.

"Wait, I'm leading?" Kallie smiled and nodded, amused at Fiona's expression as she pointed to herself, as if to remind her who she was.

"What, you don't know how to lead?"

"I do, I've just… never actually led before. Sorry if I step on your toes." Kallie chuckled, knowing full well it'd be nearly impossible for someone as physically elegant as Fiona to possibly tromp on her dance partner's feet.

As they swayed gently to the music, Kallie couldn't help but stare intently at Fiona. She was looking down at their feet, nervously making sure that she didn't step on the other girl's feet. Her lip was wedged adorably between her teeth, staining the flesh a dark pink. It was that moment that the colour of Fiona's cocktail dress occurred to Kallie. A glance down assured her she was correct, her breath suddenly hitching in her throat.

Sea Foam Green.

"Fiona…" she gently got the girl's attention. Her gaze flicked upwards to meet Kallie's own orbs that were swimming with unidentified emotion. The girl then suddenly realized that she had no idea what to say next, but her next words were breathed out with ease anyhow. "Thank you for the present."

Fiona's gaze flickered back down, at herself and her dress that was the same colour and material as the tie Fiona had gifted Kallie earlier that evening. "That actually… wasn't my only present for you." Kallie smiled, and she softly slipped her forefinger under the other girl's chin, tilting it upwards in order to lock their gazes.

"I know." She leaned forwards then, gently locking lips with Fiona. Almost immediately, one of Fiona's hands left the other girl's waist and settled on her neck. She pulled Kallie closer, savouring the delicate taste of chamomile and ginger before their lips parted, just as the song they had been dancing to slowed to a stop.

"You taste good." Fiona nearly whispered the statement, and if Kallie hadn't been so utterly out of breath, she might've responded with a sarcastic remark. Instead though, she just longfully gazed at Fiona, her fingers threading through her dark curls as the rest of the party looked on.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **_**Fallie is on.**_


	29. Author's Note where I say sorry a lot

**I'm sorry. I'm just really, really sorry; I'm even more sorry now that a lot of my readers probably thought this was an update.**

**Obviously, it is not.**

**And I'm going to apologize again because I know I hate it when an author updates just for it to be an Author's Note. Believe me, I've had it happen to me and it is both infuriating and disappointing.**

**But, I didn't just want to not update for a million years and leave everyone wondering why, so here it is: This fic, and all my others currently in the works are cancelled. My life is just complete crap and chaos right now and I have no inspiration nor desire to write. Believe me, if things weren't as bad as they are I wouldn't be doing this. One day I WILL return to this fic though, that much I assure you, it just won't be today or anytime soon, so don't be expecting any updates, I guess.**

**Also, I apologize again for leaving this as a cliff-hanger fic, I assure you I didn't mean for that to happen because don't I know how it feels to be getting into a fic only for something dramatic to happen, and then never see another update. But I guess I'm unintentionally breaking every single one of my rules.**

**I don't really know how to end this in an appropriate manner, so I suppose I just will. Again, I am so unbelievably sorry.**

**-Dancer/Cloud/Uni/whatever-you-may-know-me-as**


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